REsearch

Our research is designed to promote the transformation
of mental health care by increasing knowledge of supports, services, and policies that:

• Build on family strengths;
• Are community based, family driven, and youth guided;
• Promote cultural competence; and
• Are based on evidence of effectiveness.

RTC Web Publications Impact Survey Responses

Many of you have received and responded to a web survey on the usefulness and impact of our Center's publications. Since October 2007 we have received over 1,000 responses and we would thank everyone who has participated!

Here are some of the responses we received highlighting benefits of the publications available on our website:

• "I appreciate all the efforts of folks who work so hard to make wraparound materials available, and help facilitators organize materials and the process so that it is more understandable and more respectful of families!"


• "It was a very well written collation of lots of material. For me it helped me to see my child's situation in terms of complex trauma, which is very painful to do, especially for one's own child. This is helping my advocacy, which is an ongoing process."


• "The breadth of information you provide in your newsletter in incredibly valuable to me as an advocacy and training professional and as a family member. I do not have the time to search for all of the current resources you highlight and in my work, we serve a wide range of families so there is always something we can use to improve our work. Thank you."


• "Information was shared with a group of youth that our agency is supporting to become advocates within our developing system of care. These youth found the information helpful in recognizing that they had choices and could feel more ownership of their decisions."


• "We used the information to help internal and external stakeholders recognize the importance of youth involvement in their permanency plans. Youth are now invited to our meetings where we discuss adoption and prospective families."
  



Click here to read the full report!

The Summer 2009 issue of Focal Point is here!

This issue of Focal Point highlights a number of successful and innovative efforts to promote youth voice and youth empowerment. Many of the articles are authored by or include contributions from youth who are directly involved in the featured programs.

Download the issue free from our website!

Staff from the Research and Training Center have published the following articles in recent months:

• Coleman, D., Walker, J.S., Lee, J., Squire, P. N., & Friesen, B. J. (2009). Children's beliefs about the causes of childhood depression and ADHD: A study of stigmatization. Psychiatric Services, 60, 950-957.
• McBeath, B., Briggs, H.E., & Aisenber, E. (2009). The Role of Welfare Managers in Promoting Agency Performance Through Experimentation. Children and Youth Services Review, 31(1).
• Brennan, E. M., Bradley, J. R., Allen, M. D., & Perry, D. F. (2008). The evidence base for mental health consultation in early childhood settings: Research synthesis addressing staff and program outcomes. Early Education and Development, 19(6), 982-1022.
• Brennan, E. M., Rosenzweig, J. M., & Malsch, A. (2008). Disabilities and work-family challenges: Parents having children with special health care needs. Work Family Encyclopedia. Sloan Work and Family Research Network, Boston College.
  
• Rosenzweig, J. M., & Brennan, E. M. (2008). Work, life, and the mental health system of care: A guide for professionals supporting families of children with emotional or behavioral disorders. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.
• Walker, J. S., & Melvin, J. K. (2008). Emotional disorders in children and adolescents. International Encyclopedia of Rehabilitation. Buffalo, NY: University of Buffalo, Center for International Rehabilitation Research Information.

The Transition to Independence project has released this document offering tips to school and agency staff involved in developing transition programs for youth with mental health difficulties:

• Starting Points for Communities Developing New Transition Programs for Young People with Mental Health Difficulties
  

The Achieve my Plan (AMP) project has produced two family- and consumer-friendly publications.

• “Best Practices for Increasing Meaningful Youth Participation in Collaborative Team Planning” offers advice and support for increasing youth participation in care and treatment planning.
• The accompanying brochure “Is your organization supporting meaningful youth participation in collaborative team planning? A self-assessment quiz” gives individuals (youth, agencies, families, etc.) the opportunity to test their organization’s commitment to youth involvement.

Several tools and example documents are now available on the Transitions to Kindergarten project page. These include:

• Training presentation (Presentation slides explaining why supporting the transition to kindergarten is important, and suggestions for how to ease that transition)
• Example interagency agreement between Head Start and School Districts
• Transition best-practices worksheet (planning sheet for early childhood programs)
• Transitions to Kindergarten to-do list (checklist for parents to help plan the transition between Head Start and Kindergarten)

On May 31-June 2, 2007 the Research and Training Center hosted our biennial Building on Family Strengths Conference. Held at the Portland Hilton and Executive Tower, this year’s conference theme was “State of the Science: Effective Services for ALL: Strategies to Promote Mental Health and Thriving for Underserved Children and Families.” The conference featured a diverse collection of participants, including researchers, family members, and professionals, as well as attendees from three continents.

The overall response to the conference was favorable. Many attendees contacted us with their comments:

• "I think it's a great conference, improving every time...nice integration of research, theory, practice, policy, advocacy...best representation of families and best mix of race/ethnicity."
• "The workshops were invaluable and inspiring helping me advocate for additional recommendations that will help remove barriers to quality care and support families and children."
• "I have been impressed from beginning to end with how thoughtfully the conference was organized -- it seems everything was in place to make this both a significant learning experience and a user-friendly conference."
• "I find the Portland State conference to be very helpful.  The environment is very relaxed.  The style of the conference is very comfortable and encourages interaction.  The presentations are always well selected and excellent.  I found the Youth and Trauma panel to be incredibly moving and forceful."
• "Loved it...no changes; best one ever.  Impressed with the increased rigor of the research presented. Just wish it were still every year"