Student Name
Capella University
NURS-FPX 6026 Biopsychosocial Concepts for Advanced Nursing Practice 2
Prof. Name
Date
Analysis of Position Papers for Vulnerable Population
Depression and anxiety disorders are two of the most common mental health issues that youths present with today, and they have a profound effect on the child’s ability to learn, interact socially, and be happy. Research tells us that around 25–50% of young people with depression also experience anxiety, while 10–15% of those with anxiety have depression (Muñoz et al., 2023). Students attending high schools in suburban are more susceptible to developing such issues due to circumstances specific to suburban life, including competition, social media pressure, and expectations.
Although more attention has been paid to adolescent mental health issues, there is still tremendous stigma, especially for young people of color, and insufficient resources to support early identification and treatment. In this assessment, the authors will review the literature on the problem of depression and anxiety in this population group and aim to explain the predisposing factors evidenced in position papers. Finally, this research aims at helping interprofessional teams understand how they can help improve the mental health of high school students in suburban areas.
Position and Assumptions Regarding Health Outcomes
Depression and anxiety are commonly diagnosed disorders in the younger generations of adolescents; education, social interactions, and wellbeing are usually severely impacted. This issue is most notable among suburban high school students who are particularly vulnerable due to experiencing academic pressure, pressure of social expectations, and pressure from social media. The findings of a study by Wickersham et al. (2020) reveal that young individuals with depression are at a higher risk of lower educational achievement compared to their peers without depression. Another study shows that social media contributes to the disorder through comparison, cyberbullying, and pressure to have a certain image/lifestyle (Khalaf, 2023).
Such conditions affect these adolescents because they often have problems with how they feel, interact with others, and learn and concentrate at school. The adolescent population is critical to address because they represents a formative stage in human development, where mental health issues can have long-term consequences. The inability to treat mental health issues results in substance use disorders, chronic mental health disorders, and limited life chances both in professional and personal life later in life. To address this challenge, further efforts with a specific and comprehensive timeline-based strategy must be worked out for this population (Muñoz et al., 2023). By intervening during adolescence, we have the opportunity to prevent these outcomes and support the development of resilient and healthy adults.
NURS FPX 6026 Assessment 1 Analysis of Position Papers for Vulnerable Populations
Currently, the care available to address depression and anxiety among suburban high school students is fragmented and insufficient. While schools offer some mental health resources, such as counselors and peer support programs, access to specialized care is often limited by stigma, funding, and availability of services. Existing initiatives may lack integration with community-based interventions, leaving gaps in early identification, prevention, and treatment. Our position strongly advocates for the development and implementation of a comprehensive, school-centered mental health strategy tailored to suburban high school students. This strategy should include early screening, evidence-based interventions, and educational programs targeting students and parents to reduce stigma and promote awareness.
The position has early intervention for adolescents when they have mental health issues and is based on certain assumptions. It is best to begin something early to avoid long-term problems for the adolescents and the community. Thus, schools are viewed as appropriate settings for mental health settings. Structured approaches such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) have now been proven to better assist students in confronting these challenges (Zhang et al., 2022). To eliminate prejudice against students with psychological disorders or disabilities, mental health education should be provided. Family support is needed to build the support to get through the difficult period. Working with schools, families, and communities improves care (Mackova et al., 2022). These beliefs inform a plan to provide youth with skills with the goal of their social and academic success.
The Role and Challenges of the Interprofessional Team
Interprofessional care is used to identify and support the students experiencing depression and anxiety and maintain the Multidimensional youth wellness model to deliver care from multiple perspectives. Multidimensional Wellbeing in Youth Scale (MWYS) is one reliable model to assess wellbeing from multiple perspectives, including considering physical, psychological, social, and emotional domains (Green et al., 2023). The team may include school counselors, psychologists, social workers, pediatricians, teachers, and the child’s family. Each professional here becomes a provider of specialized knowledge and approach to treatment and management.
For example, psychologists or counselors can work with children in coming up with therapies and interventions for coping with mental conditions. At the same time, pediatricians and primary care doctors diagnose physical conditions and write prescriptions where appropriate. The school social worker and family therapist can then help to offer support and intervention to the family to take a more global approach to the adolescent’s mental health. With school concerns, teachers are known to detect signs within their working environment and assist students perceived to have academic difficulties. Evidence shows that this multi-faceted approach promotes psychological education, stress management programs, and supportive environments to reduce the stigma and encourage help-seeking behavior (Santre, 2022).
NURS FPX 6026 Assessment 1 Analysis of Position Papers for Vulnerable Populations
It is necessary to recognize that distinct professional approaches, misunderstandings, and organizational pragmatic issues might emerge in interprofessional collaboration. For instance, successfully sharing information, time management, or technological support between school-based care providers and other caregivers from other facilities can sometimes be challenging. It is so because of the legal policies and procedures, different working schedules, financial constraints, and the lack of appropriate communication means. Moreover, patient care goals and interventions may not be consistent among disciplines because each may focus differently on care.
Stigma or lack of trust among parents can create challenges for adolescents to seek mental health support. These are some of the many serious adversities that necessitate open communication, reciprocity, and authenticity in care for the adolescent. Such challenges can be overcome through having well-organized team meetings, including proper training and the understanding that the team has a common goal of treating the target population.
Evaluating Supporting Evidence and Recognizing Knowledge Gaps
The multidisciplinary approach, as part of the clinical setting for improving the quality of performance in managing adolescents with depression and anxiety, is crucial. Several authors emphasize the necessity of a multi-professional approach that involves various specialists, such as psychologists, school counselors, physicians, teachers, and parents, to work on adolescent mental health. For example, studies have shown that approaches such as collaborative care model and school-based mental health services have brought desirable changes in enhancing help-seeking behavior and mental health literacy among adolescents. Velasco et al. (2020) review notes that the school structure and family engagement may reduce stigmatization and access to support services. Moreover, Zhang et al. (2022) also have focused on exploring the success of school-based programs aimed at mental disorders treatment, with special emphasis on evidence-based interventions implemented in the school setting.
However, there are still some theoretical weaknesses regarding assessing the interactions or co-participation of all members of the affiliation and, more specifically, the needs of teenagers. Some unanswered questions include Interaction concerning the roles of the professionals in the multidisciplinary team, especially social workers, counselors, and healthcare providers on patient cases. This leads to whether there are effective templates for interprofessional communication in different schools or healthcare organizations. Moreover, the translation of these interventions for the long-term and on a large scale, especially for low-income and minorities, is still questionable. Little is known about adapting mental health interventions based on adolescents’ cultural, social, and individual characteristics. Due to these knowledge deficits, more research is required to enhance the efficiency of team-based interventions in care delivery.
Evaluating Contrary Evidence on Our Position
Although the concept of using teamwork to enhance adolescents’ mental health is well-backed in literature, we have other schools of thought and some considerations. Another concern that may be raised about the approach calling for close involvement of teams in the management of adolescent mental health includes fragmentation of services. Regarding collaboration across several disciplines, the critics of this approach believe that problems of disorganization or poor synergy between professionals may emerge or that there is no unified treatment plan. For instance, Baghian et al. (2023) pointed out that interdisciplinary teams are beneficial; however, if there is no communication plan, awareness, and training among teachers, insufficient funding and cultural stigma surrounding mental health erase potential care enhancements’ advantages.
Furthermore, some of the studies also have an issue with the efficacy of school-based mental health interventions in specific settings programs. The opposing argument to concerns about school-based models is often that several schools cannot provide the necessary resources or correct structure to fulfill these interventions. However, Richter et al. (2022) observed that socioeconomic factors and the differential levels of support and quality in school districts might moderate those programs and prevent sustainable benefits to adolescents in those areas of need.
In response to these conflicting views, it is essential to understand that while there are issues with organizing using team-based approaches, several of these issues can be avoided with adequate training, communication, and planning of a cohesive team that works toward a common goal. An effective assessment and a broad and adaptable model can improve objectives’ feasibility and prevent or minimize possible obstacles to collaboration. In addition, this provided possible sources of support for the school-based interventions and may offset the issues, including the scarcity of resources raised in the literature.
Conclusion
To sum up, the climacteric guidelines for intervention on depression and anxiety in suburban high school students must involve an interprofessional intervention approach to wellness. Education professionals on the service delivery team include school counselors, teachers, and health care givers since they are pivotal in early identification and management. Poor communication and lack of resources also present a tough challenge to the project’s development. Still, these issues are easily addressed once the project team is well coordinated.
References
Baghian, N., Shati, M., Sari, A. A., Eftekhari, A., Rasolnezhad, A., Nanaei, F., & Ahmadi, B. (2023). Barriers to mental and social health programs in schools: A qualitative study in Iran. Iranian Journal of Psychiatry, 18(2), 97–107. https://doi.org/10.18502/ijps.v18i2.12360
Green, K. H., Groep, S. van de , Cruijsen, R. van der , Polak, M. G., & Crone, E. A. (2023). The Multidimensional Wellbeing in Youth Scale (MWYS): Development and psychometric properties. Personality and Individual Differences, 204, 112038. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2022.112038
NURS FPX 6026 Assessment 1 Analysis of Position Papers for Vulnerable Populations
Khalaf, A. M. (2023). The impact of social media on the mental health of adolescents and young adults: A systematic review. Cureus, 15(8). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.42990
Mackova, J., Veselska, Z. D., Geckova, A. M., Jansen, D. E. M. C., van Dijk, J. P., & Reijneveld, S. A. (2022). The role of parents in the care for adolescents suffering from emotional and behavioral problems. Frontiers in Psychology, 13(1049247). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1049247
Muñoz, I. M., Mallikarjun, P. K., Chandan, J. S., Thayakaran, R., Upthegrove, R., & Marwaha, S. (2023). Impact of anxiety and depression across childhood and adolescence on adverse outcomes in young adulthood: A UK birth cohort study. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 222(5), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.2023.23
Richter, A., Sjunnestrand, M., Strandh, M. R., & Hasson, H. (2022). Implementing school-based mental health services: A scoping review of the literature summarizing the factors that affect implementation. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(6), 1–30. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19063489
NURS FPX 6026 Assessment 1 Analysis of Position Papers for Vulnerable Populations
Santre, S. (2022). Mental health promotion in adolescents. Journal of Indian Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 18(2), 122–127. https://doi.org/10.1177/09731342221120709
Velasco, A. A., Cruz, I. S. S., Billings, J., Jimenez, M., & Rowe, S. (2020). What are the barriers, facilitators and interventions targeting help-seeking behaviours for common mental health problems in adolescents? A systematic review. BMC Psychiatry, 20(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-020-02659-0
Wickersham, A., Dickson, H., Jones, R., Pritchard, M., Stewart, R., Ford, T., & Downs, J. (2020). Educational attainment trajectories among children and adolescents with depression, and the role of sociodemographic characteristics: longitudinal data-linkage study. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 218(3), 151–157. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.2020.160
Zhang, Q., Wang, J., & Neitzel, A. (2022). School-based mental health interventions targeting depression or anxiety: A meta-analysis of rigorous randomized controlled trials for school-aged children and adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 52(1). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-022-01684-4