3 - (IOP 13) Piloting a Novel Digital Single Session CBT Implementation Tool for School Mental Health Professionals

Introduction: Youth face significant barriers to accessing mental health support, and up to 80% of youth who need help never access care. TRAILS (Transforming Research into Action to Improve the Lives of Students) is a non-profit dedicated to increasing access to evidence-based mental health care for students by training school mental health professionals (SMHPs) to deliver CBT skills groups in schools. Yet, SMHPs face numerous barriers to implementing groups (e.g., difficulty recruiting students, protecting time for training, personalizing materials, etc). Single-session strategies (S3s) offer a potential solution for improving implementation by targeting barriers in a single-session. In this study, we undertook a mixed-methods, longitudinal collaborative project to evaluate the feasibility of a novel digital, self-guided implementation support tool for SMHPs to increase their implementation of CBT skills groups with students.

Methods: To achieve this aim, we utilized an iterative design process integrating stakeholder feedback to modify an existing Single Session Intervention into a new digital, self-guided S3 for TRAILS SMHPs. The tool guides users through several steps: identifying implementation barriers, reviewing strategies to overcome barriers, considering personal strengths, and creating an action plan. Next, in a sample of SMHPs who planned to implement TRAILS groups this semester, we utilized a longitudinal pilot procedure to collect information regarding the feasibility/usability of the tool and SMHP feedback, as well as to track changes in SMHP confidence and actual CBT implementation across a one-month study period after using the intervention.

Results: With recruitment ongoing, preliminary analyses evaluated tool use from N=29 SMHPs who completed baseline procedures, of whom n=11 completed the follow-up. The most frequently identified implementation barriers included adapting TRAILS materials for students, increasing student buy-in for group participation, and general facilitation and management of groups. Acceptability scores were high. On a scale from 1 to 5, SMHPs indicated strong agreement (M=4.31) on average with each item of the Program Feedback Scale. After creating an action plan with the tool, n=25 chose to have it emailed to them. Preliminary follow-up data suggest a significant portion of SMHPs review their action plans and/or complete steps from the plan by the 1-month time point. As follow-up data collection continues, additional information regarding usage patterns and self-reported changes in confidence and implementation efforts will be identified.

Conclusions: Usage patterns, acceptability scores, and action plan reviews suggest the S3 tool is well-received among SMHPs and capable of improving implementation of TRAILS CBT groups for students. Recruitment and follow-up data collection will conclude this summer, and analyses on pre- to post-tool use will explore changes in attitudes, confidence, and success with skills group implementation. Future work will extend these piloting results by revising the S3 tool using pilot feedback, exploring modifications to tailor the tool for other users, and working to integrate the tool into TRAILS implementation programming.