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      Enhancing researcher capacity to engage youth in research: Researchers’ engagement experiences, barriers and capacity development priorities

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          Abstract

          Background

          There is increasing emphasis on engaging youth in research about youth, their needs, experiences and preferences, notably in health services research. By engaging youth as full partners, research becomes more feasible and relevant, and the validity and richness of findings are enhanced. Consequently, researchers need guidance in engaging youth effectively. This study examines the experiences, needs and knowledge gaps of researchers.

          Methods

          Eighty‐four researchers interested in youth engagement training were recruited via snowball sampling. They completed a survey regarding their youth engagement experiences, attitudes, perceived barriers and capacity development needs. Data were analysed descriptively, and comparisons were made based on current engagement experience.

          Results

          Participants across career stages and disciplines expressed an interest in increased capacity development for youth engagement. They had positive attitudes about the importance and value of youth engagement, but found it to be complex. Participants reported requiring practical guidance to develop their youth engagement practices and interest in a network of youth‐engaged researchers and on‐going training. Those currently engaging youth were more likely to report the need for greater appreciation of youth engagement by funders and institutions.

          Conclusions

          Engaging youth in research has substantial benefits. However, skills in collaborating with youth to design, conduct and implement research have to be learned. Researchers need concrete training and networking opportunities to develop and maximize these skills. They also need mechanisms that formally acknowledge the value of engagement. Researchers and those promoting youth engagement in research are encouraged to consider these findings in their promotion and training endeavours.

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          Most cited references20

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          Patient and Public Engagement in Integrated Knowledge Translation Research: Are we there yet?

          Plain English summary There have been many attempts to improve how healthcare services are developed and delivered. Despite this, we know that there are many gaps and differences in practice and that these can lead to poor patient outcomes. In addition, there are also concerns that research is being undertaken that does not reflects the realities or needs of those using healthcare services, and that the use of research findings in practice is slow. As such, shared approaches to research, such as integrated knowledge translation, are being used. Integrated knowledge translation (IKT) is a research approach that brings together researchers, along with other stakeholders that have knowledge about a particular healthcare issue. Stakeholders may include healthcare providers and policy-makers. More recently, there has been a growing awareness of the need to include patients and members of the public within research processes. These collaborative and patient-oriented research approaches are seen as a way to develop research that tackles ongoing gaps in practice and reflect the insights, needs and priorities of those most affected by health research outcomes. Despite great support, little is known about how these major research approaches are connected, or how they may bring about improvements in the development and use of research evidence. In this paper, we examine how IKT and patient engagement processes are linked, as well as exploring where differences exist. Through this, we highlight opportunities for greater patient engagement in IKT research and to identify areas that need to be understood further. Abstract Healthcare organizations across the world are being increasingly challenged to develop and implement services that are evidence-based and bring about improvement in patient and health service outcomes. Despite an increasing emphasis upon evidence-based practice, large variations in practice remain and gaps pervade in the creation and application of knowledge that improves outcomes. More collaborative models of health research have emerged over recent years, including integrated knowledge translation (IKT), whereby partnerships with key knowledge users are developed to enhance the responsiveness and application of the findings. Likewise, the meaningful engagement of patients, in addition to the inclusion of patient-reported outcomes and priorities, has been hailed as another mechanism to improve the relevance, impact and efficiency of research. Collectively, both IKT and patient engagement processes provide a vehicle to support research that can address health disparities and improve the delivery of effective and responsive healthcare services. However, the evidence to support their impact is limited and while these approaches are inextricably connected through their engagement focus, it is unclear how IKT and patient engagement processes are linked conceptually, theoretically, and practically. In this paper, we will begin to critically examine some of the linkages and tensions that exist between IKT and patient-engagement for research and will examine potential opportunities for IKT researchers as they navigate and enact meaningful partnerships with patients and the public.
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            Implementation of a youth‐adult partnership model in youth mental health systems research: Challenges and successes

            Abstract Background By integrating Youth–Adult Partnerships (Y‐APs) in organizational decision making and programming in health‐care settings, youth can be engaged in decisions that affect them in a way that draws on their unique skills and expertise. Despite challenges, Y‐APs can have many benefits for youth and adults alike, as well as for the programmes and initiatives that they undertake together. Objective This article describes the development, implementation and success of a Y‐AP initiative at the McCain Centre at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, a large urban hospital. Method The McCain Y‐AP implementation model was developed based on the existing literature, guided by the team's progressive experience. The development and implementation procedure is described, with indicators of the model's success and recommendations for organizations interested integrating youth engagement. Results The McCain Y‐AP has integrated youth into a wide range of mental health and substance use‐related initiatives, including research projects, conferences and educational presentations. The model of youth engagement is flexible to include varying degrees of involvement, allowing youth to contribute in ways that fit their availability, interest and skills. Youth satisfaction has been strong and both the youth and adult partners have learned from the experience. Discussion Through the McCain Y‐AP initiative, youth engagement has helped advance numerous initiatives in a variety of ways. Flexible engagement, multifaceted mentorship, reciprocal learning and authentic decision making have led to a successful partnership that has provided opportunities for growth for all those involved. Health‐care organizations interested in engaging youth can learn from the McCain Y‐AP experience to guide their engagement initiatives and maximize success.
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              Engaging youth in research planning, design and execution: Practical recommendations for researchers

              Abstract Context Engaging youth as partners in academic research projects offers many benefits for the youth and the research team. However, it is not always clear to researchers how to engage youth effectively to optimize the experience and maximize the impact. Objective This article provides practical recommendations to help researchers engage youth in meaningful ways in academic research, from initial planning to project completion. These general recommendations can be applied to all types of research methodologies, from community action‐based research to highly technical designs. Results Youth can and do provide valuable input into academic research projects when their contributions are authentically valued, their roles are clearly defined, communication is clear, and their needs are taken into account. Researchers should be aware of the risk of tokenizing the youth they engage and work proactively to take their feedback into account in a genuine way. Some adaptations to regular research procedures are recommended to improve the success of the youth engagement initiative. Conclusions By following these guidelines, academic researchers can make youth engagement a key tenet of their youth‐oriented research initiatives, increasing the feasibility, youth‐friendliness and ecological validity of their work and ultimately improve the value and impact of the results their research produces.
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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                Role: Assistant Professor
                Role: Youth Engagement Coordinator
                Role: Youth Engagement Facilitator
                Role: Research Assistant
                Role: Assistant Professor
                Role: PhD Candidate
                Role: Assistant Professor
                Role: Associate Professor
                Role: Assistant Professor
                Role: Assistant Professor
                Role: Senior Scientist
                Role: Associate Professor
                Role: Post‐Doctoral Research Fellow
                Role: Executive Director Foundry
                Role: Senior Scientistjoanna.henderson@camh.ca
                Journal
                Health Expect
                Health Expect
                10.1111/(ISSN)1369-7625
                HEX
                Health Expectations : An International Journal of Public Participation in Health Care and Health Policy
                John Wiley and Sons Inc. (Hoboken )
                1369-6513
                1369-7625
                14 March 2020
                June 2020
                : 23
                : 3 ( doiID: 10.1111/hex.v23.3 )
                : 584-592
                Affiliations
                [ 1 ] Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
                [ 2 ] University of Toronto
                [ 3 ] Foundry
                [ 4 ] University of British Columbia
                [ 5 ] Centre for Health Evaluation Outcome Sciences
                [ 6 ] Wisdom2Action
                [ 7 ] Dalhousie University
                [ 8 ] UBC Okanagan
                [ 9 ] Department of psychiatry, McGill University
                [ 10 ] ACCESS Open Minds
                [ 11 ] Douglas Hospital Research Centre
                [ 12 ] University of Ottawa
                [ 13 ] The Royal's Institute of Mental Health Research, affiliated with the University of Ottawa
                Author notes
                [*] [* ] Correspondence

                Joanna Henderson, Margaret and Wallace McCain Centre for Child, Youth and Family Mental Health, Cundill Centre for Child and Youth Depression, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.

                Email: joanna.henderson@ 123456camh.ca

                Author information
                https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9387-5193
                Article
                HEX13032
                10.1111/hex.13032
                7321719
                32170902
                99d52e29-3bc3-428e-a034-4b780f639ffc
                © 2020 The Authors Health Expectations published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd

                This is an open access article under the terms of the http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

                History
                : 16 October 2019
                : 03 January 2020
                : 21 January 2020
                Page count
                Figures: 2, Tables: 5, Pages: 9, Words: 7058
                Funding
                Funded by: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada , open-funder-registry 10.13039/501100000155;
                Categories
                Original Research Paper
                Original Research Papers
                Custom metadata
                2.0
                June 2020
                Converter:WILEY_ML3GV2_TO_JATSPMC version:5.8.4 mode:remove_FC converted:28.06.2020

                Health & Social care
                capacity development,patient engagement,youth,youth‐adult partnerships
                Health & Social care
                capacity development, patient engagement, youth, youth‐adult partnerships

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