Understanding the Needs of Young People with Mental Health: The ANSWERS Project's Impact Case Study

ANSWERS is an observational cohort study, aiming to collect early comprehensive mental health and social determinant information across multiple timepoints with 250 representative young people with pre-existing mental health needs across Norfolk and Suffolk.

ANSWERS was awarded a grant by UEA Health and Social Care Partners in 2021 to:

1. Collect and compare routine mental health outcomes (anxiety, depression, traumatic symptoms, satisfaction) in 250 representative young people (aged 16-24) accessing help for mental health problems in Norfolk and Suffolk across a 9-month period, looking at differences in urban/rural, gender, age, ethnicity, educational/employment, mental health presentation and socioeconomic status.
2. Understand how changes in mental health outcomes are impacted by holistic daily life stressors, life events and social determinants in a young person's health population across the 9-month period. This includes examination of helpful factors (strengthens/assets) as well as negatives influencers, with specific examination of education, employment and training engagement.
3. Understand differential impacts of daily stressors and life events on young people from diverse demographic backgrounds.
4. Understand how information about mental health, help-seeking and healthcare service engagement by young people can be interpreted and used by the healthcare service to prioritise ongoing service provision, resourcing, reporting and quality improvements through regular feedback reporting loops.
5. Evaluate the feasibility and usefulness of establishing a young people's mental health research cohort to inform mental health planning and strategy in the future.