Background: In the United States, 48% of children report having at least one key adverse childhood experience (ACE), and the statistics worsen when considering socioeconomic factors such as ethnicity, gender, and geographic location. These experiences predispose children to development of PTSD, depression, anxiety, and substance use. Children with low socioeconomic status not only have increased exposure to ACEs but also decreased access to mental health care. To both improve the mental health of underserved youth as well as attenuate psychiatric manifestations later in life, early intervention is crucial.
Objective: The primary aim of this study is to determine the most prevalent mental health needs of underserved youth in the Dallas area, how these could be addressed by the development of a mental health education curriculum, and ways to improve access to this curriculum.
Study design: A survey was distributed to organizations in Dallas involved in care of underserved youth. The completed surveys were then analyzed to determine the potential benefit of a curriculum designed to educate children about mental health as well as coping techniques.
Results: A total of 32 organizations were included in the final analysis. Cognitive techniques to manage stress (setting boundaries, identifying values, and recognizing emotions) were seen as the most beneficial, with 84% of responses indicating that these techniques would be "very beneficial" to the youth they served. Physical techniques (yoga, tai chi, and meditation) and community involvement (volunteering and nature walks) were also well received, with 66% of organizations reporting that these techniques would be "very beneficial." Specific topics organizations felt important for youth included processing trauma, emotional self-regulation, and how to seek help. Only 6% of organizations reported that they believed their youth would be "very likely," to attend monthly lessons, though factors such as virtual meetings, transportation facilitation, and incentives may increase attendance. 38% and 37% of organizations were "very interested" and "somewhat interested" in implementing a curriculum respectively.
Conclusion: There is a great need in the Dallas area for more mental health resources for underserved youth; in particular, a curriculum teaching cognitive techniques to manage stress would be beneficial. While there is great interest in implementing such a curriculum, careful consideration must be taken to reduce barriers to attendance. This is the first needs assessment to date examining the mental health needs of this population, and with these results, we can begin the next steps of creating a robust curriculum and piloting it in our community. Through creating an official student organization at University of Texas Southwestern Medical school, we hope to have medical student volunteers grow the organization, increase partnership with organizations in the community, and provide high quality mental health education free of charge to Dallas youth.
