1 - (IOP 32) Characterizing Symptom Trajectories for Youth Participating in the FAST Program: An Integrated Primary Care Intervention

Youth mental illness prevalences have increased annually in the United States, driven by numerous factors. In 2023, the U.S. surgeon general declared a youth mental health crisis, highlighting the urgency of addressing this issue. Societal factors, including the global COVID-19 pandemic, policies affecting marginalized groups, and the stigma surrounding mental health, have exacerbated these challenges. Many youths with mental health needs face significant barriers to treatment, and disparities in treatment access contribute to greater difficulties for those in underserved sociodemographic groups. While access to traditional outpatient treatment is often inconsistent, many youths from diverse backgrounds are able to meet with a primary care provider annually. Embedding behavioral health services into primary care can reduce treatment barriers and provide evidence-based interventions to youth who otherwise might not receive care. This study uses longitudinal retrospective clinical data to examine the treatment trajectory for 253 youth (age 3–20, M[SD]= 10.62 [3.75] years) who participated in the FAST programs, a suite of brief behavioral interventions for common youth mental health problems embedded in an integrated primary care setting. It should be noted that the current sample of patients was not highly diverse (3.6% African American, .4% American Indian, 1.6% Asian, 7.5% Hispanic/Latine, 9.5% Multi-Racial, 36.8% Non-Hispanic, 28.1% White, and 1.2% Other). Multivariate regression analyses through multilevel modeling will be utilized to map participant symptom changes across time, to help inform an “ideal” length of treatment for integrated pediatric primary care (Range in weeks: [1-61.57], M[SD]= 15.15[11.12]) for the FAST interventions. Next, exploratory analyses will consider limited sociodemographic factors, such as ethnicity and gender, to identify if disparities were present for these patients. Follow-up studies that intentionally recruit diverse samples with individuals from marginalized groups will be an important extension of this work. Nevertheless, the current data will inform useful discussion and future steps towards more equitable mental healthcare.