BRiTA: Building Resilience in Transcultural Adolescents

A Depression and Anxiety Prevention Program for Young People from CALD Backgrounds.

Agency details Contact person Target group(s) Partners and funding Timing

Depression is becoming a major public health concern in Australia as well as internationally, with potentially more than 25% of young people, including those from CALD backgrounds, being affected.

Despite growing attention to prevention and early intervention programs, few structured programs are available which take a resilience-building approach to the prevention of mental health problems in this target group.

The BRiTA Project is being developed in response to the mental health issues of young people CALD backgrounds identified by the QLD Transcultural Mental Health Centre paper "Coping in New World" (2001).

In addition, an extensive literature review has been conducted to identify specific indicators of resilience relevant to CALD young people. A structured, experiential learning style 10-week program has been developed, and is currently being piloted in 4 sites (3 in QLD and 1 in ACT). Rigorous evaluation using a mix of quantitative and qualitative data is being conducted to identify changes in self-rated depression, anxiety, stress (general and acculturation stress), personal resiliency traits and behaviours, as well as various ratings of satisfaction with the program. Future directions of the program include a more extensive pilot in QLD as well as a national pilot of the program and the group facilitators training package, as well as development of additional modules suitable for primary school-aged children as well as young people from refugee backgrounds.

Agency details

Organisation name:
Department of Health QLD

Address:
360 Ipswich Road
Annerley QLD 4103

Telephone:
07 3240 2833

Fax:
07 3240 2282

Emailaddress:

kate_lemerle at health.qld.gov.au

Note: you will need to put the @ symbol in instead of at in the above.

Website:
http://www.health.qld.gov.au/

Contact person

Name:
Kate Lemerle

Target group(s)

Target group:
Adolescents

Topic area:
Anxiety/ Anxiety disorders, Resilience building

Available languages:
English

Geographical coverage:
State/Territory

Partners and funding)

Project partners:
Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, Multicultural Mental Health Australia, and the ACT Department of Health, Housing and Community Care. The following partners are involved in different capacities:
- Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Qld
- MindMatters Program
- Mental Health Promotion, Mental Health Unit, Qld Health
- Mental Health Promotion, Public Health Services, Qld Health
- Early Intervention Program, Child & Youth Mental Health, Qld Health
- English as a Second Language Program, Education Qld
- School Guidance Program, Education Qld
- School Based Youth Health Nurses Program, Qld Health
- School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University
- Resilient Children & Communities Project, Qld University of Technology
- Youth Program, Qld Program of Assistance to Survivors of Torture & Trauma
- Companion House, Assisting Survivors of Torture & Trauma, Canberra
- Youth Program, Logan City Multicultural Neighbourhood Centre
- Mental Health Child and Adolescent Unit, Canberra
- Youth & Family Services (Logan City) Inc.
- Youth Affairs Network of Qld
- Multicultural Counselling Services, KINECTIONS Inc
- The Peace Centre, Mercy Family Services
- Multicultural Families Organisation Inc., Gold Coast
- Secondary schools with a high proportion of students from a CALD background.

Project funding sources:
Commonwealth, State/Territory Govt, Other

Timing

Start date:
Feb 2003

End date:
Feb 2004

Comments on project time-span:
Additional funding currently being sought to extend the project.

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