Abstract
Globally, there is a significant gap between what is known and what is done in prevention and treatment for depression in children, adolescents and youths. Evidence-based strategies that surmount the barriers to the provision of mental healthcare are essential to improve the lives of those affected by depression. This chapter provides a review of innovative strategies to diminish the prevention and treatment gap for depression in children, adolescents, and youths. It presents recent evidence related to the feasibility of implementation and efficacy for innovation cases that show promise for building clinical capacity and expanding mental health coverage to improve prevention and treatment for depression: (1) integration of mental health services into primary care; (2) task shifting and training of nonspecialists in mental healthcare; and (3) innovative use of technological platforms to enhance access, cut costs, and reduce stigma. Regardless of the evidence that supports the viability of these models, it is important to test their attainability, agreeableness, utility, and adequacy in different settings, including low- and middle-income countries. In addition, these advances require political support, to be effectively implemented and scaled up to such an extent that they meaningfully affect the burden of disease in children, adolescents, and youths with depression around the world.
Keywords
- Depression
- Prevention
- Promotion
- Children
- Adolescents
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This manuscript was supported by ANID – Millennium Science Initiative Program – ICS13_005.
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Irarrázaval, M. (2023). Innovations in Closing the Global Prevention and Treatment Gap for Depression in Children, Adolescents, and Youths. In: Martínez, V., Miranda-Castillo , C. (eds) Prevention and Early Treatment of Depression Through the Life Course. Depression and Personality. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13029-8_2
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