Introduction Evidence Frameworks Assessment Design Implementation MEAL Sector Pull-outs
Introduction
What is Integrating Mental Health and Psychosocial Support into Youth Programming: A Toolkit?
Integrating Mental Health and Psychosocial Support into Youth Programming: A Toolkit provides strategies and tools for designing, implementing, and evaluating mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) programs and activities for youth in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and conflict-affected contexts.
The Toolkit is also available in Arabic, French, and Spanish.
Why is this Toolkit needed?
The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that nearly one in five people are impacted by poor mental health in conflict and post-conflict areas and nearly 50 percent of all mental health issues globally start before the age of 14. For youth ages 15 to 29, suicide is the fourth leading cause of death; it is a leading cause of death for those under the age of 15. Despite these high prevalence rates and the negative impacts of poor mental health on education, health, and employment outcomes, youth mental health is grossly under-resourced in international development and neglected in the global public health space and development investments.
Who is the intended audience?
This Toolkit, developed under YouthPower2: Learning and Evaluation, is a reference for USAID field and headquarters staff, as well as national and international partners involved in designing, managing, and evaluating MHPSS programming and strategies for youth.
What is the intended context and population?
The Toolkit includes resources used in both development and humanitarian contexts. It helps you select the right tool(s) given your implementing context and project time frame, as well as the needs of the target population, which should always drive the selection of MHPSS interventions, services, and activities. This Toolkit provides helpful guidance, tips, and resources on where to start and how to program effectively.
How will this Toolkit help me?
This Toolkit will help you:
- Use clear terminology and definitions when working in the areas of youth and MHPSS.
- Be strategic and realistic about what to expect of MHPSS programming targeting youth.
- Design better programs according to the principles of “what works” (what is supported by evidence) and “what might work” (promising activities with less rigorous evidence).
- Understand the recommended qualifications for staff who manage activities that integrate MHPSS.
- Apply examples of illustrative interventions and select appropriate expected outcomes and indicators for youth MHPSS programming.
- Prepare an evaluation scope of work to analyze MHPSS activities or needs.
Where do I go to…?
This Toolkit is not intended to be read from beginning to end, rather it is designed so that you can easily access relevant information.
Conduct a scoping process to identify the mental health and psychosocial needs of youth: Your first step in developing youth MHPSS programming is to identify the target population, understand the population’s MHPSS needs, and identify appropriate evidence-based approaches. Guidance on conducting MHPSS assessments can be found in Section 4, “Assessments: Identifying and Understanding Local MHPSS Needs and Selecting Objectives.” You may also want to review the section on Contextualizing MHPSS Terminology and Concepts.
Effectively design standalone and integrated MHPSS programs: Once you have completed your scoping exercise, decide whether you will address the MHPSS needs through standalone or integrated programming. Examples of integrated MHPSS programming can be found in the sector pull-outs.
Understand foundational concepts for MHPSS: Review USAID MHPSS Terminology for an overview of the definitions and read through the frameworks that support MHPSS programming for youth, including a discussion of the strong linkages between USAID’s Positive Youth Development (PYD) Framework and the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Intervention Pyramid for MHPSS in Emergencies.
Understand evidence-based programming for MHPSS: You will find a brief discussion of the evidence for MHPSS programming, including a summary of the key gaps in programming and research for MHPSS in “The Evidence for Youth MHPSS.”
Effectively staff MHPSS programs: Staffing considerations for MHPSS programming can be found under Implementation, Staffing MHPSS Programs, and Supervision and Coaching.
Develop monitoring, evaluation, adapting, and learning systems for MHPSS: If you are looking for guidance on developing a strong monitoring, evaluation, adapting, and learning (MEAL) system for your MHPSS program, review Monitoring, Evaluation, Adapting, and Learning for Youth-focused MHPSS Programming.
Understand Safe Programming, Do No Harm for MHPSS, and other considerations when working with distressed populations: The Toolkit elaborates on strategies to ensure the development of programming that does not inadvertently result in harm to beneficiaries and notes considerations for working with populations with high levels of distress. Throughout the document, Do No Harm (DNH) considerations—an important part of MHPSS programming—are included.
What are the main takeaways?
- There is a strong and growing evidence base for the utility of MHPSS programming across LMICs and conflict-affected areas that demonstrates positive results for youth, their families, and their communities. Some positive results from MHPSS interventions include:
- Feeling safe and secure
- Improved social connections
- Improved school performance
- Future thinking
- Reductions in violent behavior at home and in the community
- Increased positive parenting
- Reduction in violent and harsh parenting techniques
- Ongoing technical (including clinical) supervision and in-service training for MHPSS staff are essential.
- MHPSS programming should include the full spectrum of services from improving skills to manage stress to addressing mental conditions.
- There are numerous points to consider throughout the program cycle of a youth-focused MHPSS program, including but not limited to: the special needs of the target population, the special needs of caretakers and care providers, cultural context, perception of mental health and associated stigma, local staff capacity, availability of MHPSS-related referral resources, and service delivery modes.
Click here to view the accompanying USAID Mission Checklist. This document is designed to support USAID field and headquarters staff when integrating MHPSS into the USAID’s Program Cycle, including country development and cooperation strategies, scopes of work, and USAID solicitations.