OCMH Senior Research Analyst Amy Marsman spotlights recent articles, resources, and research findings impacting youth mental health.
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A Systematic Review of Longitudinal Risk and Protective Factors for Loneliness in Youth
To effectively tackle loneliness in youth, prevention and intervention strategies should be based on solid evidence regarding risk and protective factors in this age group. This systematic literature review identifies and narratively synthesizes longitudinal studies of risk and protective factors for loneliness in children and adolescents aged below 25 years. Risk factors that were consistently identified across multiple longitudinal studies included: low peer acceptance and peer victimization, depression, social anxiety, internalizing symptoms, low self-esteem, shyness, and neuroticism.
Peer-led Program Leads to 29% Reduction in Suicide Attempts Among Students
A new study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine shows that Sources of Strength, a peer-led suicide prevention and wellness program, substantially reduced suicide attempts by 29% among high school students. The authors say that the evidence underscores the importance of partnering with young people as agents of change and connectors to address the youth mental health crisis noting their voice and influence have tremendous power to create positive change and connection in their schools and communities.
Primary Care Can Play Key Role in Suicide Prevention
A recent study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) found that when primary care clinics added suicide care practices to routine visits, suicide attempts dropped by 25% in the three months after the visit. The findings highlight how impactful it can be for primary care clinics to take an active role in preventing suicide and help empower health systems to integrate those practices into clinical care. A related video on Suicide Prevention in Health Care Settings is also available from NIMH.
Hope: A Guide for Faith Leaders to Help Prevent Youth Suicide
This guide focuses on suicide prevention specifically geared for faith leaders who work with youth. It provides information to help faith leaders learn how to identify young people who may be at risk for suicide, describes concrete steps to take if someone is struggling, and encourages the creation of supportive communities. It also describes the unique and crucial role of faith communities and faith leaders in helping prevent youth suicide and fostering mental health.
Improving Firearm Safety in Pediatric Primary Care
In a new study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), researchers tested two strategies to help clinicians provide a secure firearm storage program to parents during pediatric visits. Known as S.A.F.E. Firearm, the program involved talking to parents about firearm safety and offering them a free cable lock. One of the strategies led to a sizable increase, nearly 50%, in the percentage of pediatric clinicians offering firearm safety guidance.
Report: In Wisconsin, More Gun Deaths than Car Accident Deaths
According to a study released on gun violence in Wisconsin, there are more gun deaths in Wisconsin than death from a motor vehicle accident. The analysis offers year-over-year trend analyses by sex, age, race, and ethnicity for firearm suicide and firearm homicide. It also examines gun suicide and homicide death in urban and rural areas and presents firearm criminal trace data from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). The report also presents personal stories of Wisconsin residents impacted by lethal gun violence.
Wisconsin Found to be Missing Key Gun Safety Laws
The Everytown Gun Law Rankings, a nationwide ranking compared gun policy across the country that scores every state on the strength of its gun laws, was recently released for 2025. A clear pattern emerged: states with strong gun laws see less gun violence.
Insurers Failed to Comply with Mental Health Coverage Law
The U.S. Department of Labor found widespread noncompliance and violations of federal law in how health plans and insurers cover mental health care, echoing the findings of a recent ProPublica investigation. The report examined the enforcement and implementation of the federal Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which requires health insurance plans to provide the same access to mental health care as they do to medical care. Health plans, and the companies that administer them, have excluded key behavioral treatments, such as therapies for substance use and autism, and offered inadequate networks of mental health providers.
Evidence for Public Policies to Prevent Suicide Death
Many studies provide evidence that public policies can prevent suicide death. This analysis from the Annual Review of Public Health summarizes evidence across multiple domains of public policy. The analysis finds that policies that improve economic security, limit access to alcohol, and restrict access to lethal means demonstrate the strongest evidence for preventing suicide death. Economic, social, and regulatory policies that are not explicitly focused on suicide can also prevent suicide. Policies related to hate crime laws, antitransgender rights, and same-sex marriage laws are explored.
Best Practices and Effective Models for Achieving Same Day/Next Day Appointments
The 2024 Connected and Strong series focuses on themes surrounding implementing a connected, strong, accessible, and effective behavioral health crisis services system nationwide. The seventh paper, Facilitating Rapid Access to Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Use Care, describes best practices and effective models for achieving same day/next day appointments in Community Mental Health Centers (CMHCs) and Certified Community Behavioral Health Centers (CCBHCs). It focuses on maintaining quality of care and fiscal sustainability while ensuring timely access to services. Additionally, the paper examines the potential impact of these initiatives on under-resourced populations, addressing the importance of equity and access in mental health care.
Surgeon General Issues Parting Prescription for America
U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy shared his Parting Prescription for America, reflecting on his time in office and issuing a call to action for the future well-being of our society. After years of research and numerous conversations, Dr. Murthy identified one of the key detrimental factors plaguing America: the lack of community bonds. His prescription to the public is to actively rebuild community through relationships, service, and purpose. His message is a reminder of how vital community is to our health and happiness. It also challenges us to be intentional about centering relationships, service, and purpose in our lives, leading to more fulfilled lives.
2024 Impact Report from the Foundation for Social Connection
The Foundation for Social Connection’s 2024 Impact Report highlights the milestones achieved and showcases how they bridge divides, strengthen communities, and prioritize connection as a national value in support of their vision of a vibrant society where social connection is at the heart of how we live.
Loneliness, Trauma, and Eating Disorders
Eating disorders (EDs) are complex and often linked to traumatic childhood experiences. While childhood trauma is known to increase the risk of EDs, the role of loneliness remains underexplored. This study investigates whether loneliness mediates the relationship between childhood trauma and ED symptoms. Researchers found that childhood trauma significantly predicted higher levels of loneliness, which was associated with more severe ED symptoms, highlighting the need to address loneliness to mitigate both the impact of childhood trauma and ED severity. The authors suggest the role of social connection-focused interventions in ED care.
Medicaid in Small Towns and Rural Communities
About one-third of children in our state are insured through BadgerCare (Wisconsin’s Medicaid program). More than 40% of the state’s population live in small towns or rural areas. As Congress considers major cuts to Medicaid, this new report sheds light on the role Medicaid fulfills for small towns and rural communities. Presentation slides from a webinar on the findings of the report and discussion of how massive Medicaid cuts would impact rural residents and health care systems are also available.
Medicaid plays a larger role in rural areas than in metropolitan areas, a trend that is particularly striking among children, according to analysis by the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families (CCF). This map shows Medicaid coverage for children in Wisconsin’s small towns and rural areas. Georgetown also provides Child Healthcare Report Card for Wisconsin showing the number of uninsured children increased in 2023 as states began unwinding continuous Medicaid coverage.
Use of Telemental Health Care by Children and Adolescents
Researchers explored the concern over disparities in access to child and adolescent telemental health services at two academic pediatric centers during the pandemic, when telemental health use increased. Investigators found, contrary to the hope and intention of telemental health policies, there was a decrease in the percentage of youth of color receiving treatment. The analysis further indicated that over 6 million U.S. children, including a disproportionate number of low-income, rural, and Black or Hispanic youth, reside in counties with no child and adolescent psychiatrists and inadequate broadband coverage to support telepsychiatry. Related reporting from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel explored the barriers to getting telemental health services to rural youth.
Climate Change Threatens the Mental Well-Being of Youth - How to Help Them Cope
KFF Health News reports that a growing body of research shows that a large proportion of adolescents and young adults, in the U.S. and abroad, feel anxious and worried about the impact of an unstable climate in their lives today and in the future. A 2022 Harris Poll of 1,500 U.S. teenagers found that 89% of them regularly think about the environment, “with the majority feeling more worried than hopeful.” In addition, 69% said they feared they and their families would be affected by climate change in the near future. And 82% said they expected to have to make key life decisions — including where to live and whether to have children — based on the state of the environment.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that counseling on climate change be incorporated into the clinical practice of pediatricians and into medical school curriculums. A variety of other recommendations are given.
90% of LGBTQ+ Young People Say Politics Negatively Impacts Their Well-Being
Politics and legislative actions can profoundly impact the mental health and well-being of LGBTQ+ young people, who have fewer mental health challenges and lower suicide risk in environments that are welcoming to LGBTQ+ people. However, in recent years, an unprecedentedly high number of LGBTQ+-related policies have been proposed in state legislatures, leading to the enactment of many anti-LGBTQ+ laws throughout the United States and the creation of drastically different policy landscapes from state to state. The Trevor Project reports that nine out of ten (90%) LGBTQ+ young people reported that recent politics negatively impacted their well-being and discusses how state policy affects the well-being and relocation between states of LGBTQ+ young people.
Transgender Adolescents Very Rarely Prescribed Hormones and Puberty Blockers
A new study published in JAMA Pediatrics finds that despite fears of their over-medicalization, transgender adolescents are very rarely prescribed hormones and puberty blockers. Further, researchers found no transgender and gender diverse patients under age 12 in this study received hormones. According to the researchers, the findings counter a growing concern among policymakers that gender-affirming care is frequently over-prescribed to children. Research has shown that gender-affirming care improves the mental health of LGBTQ youth.
Center Us: A Native Youth
The Center for Native American Youth at the Aspen Institute released a report centering Native youth. They gathered data from approximately 1,000 Native youth participants and held a series of focus groups to better understand their needs and priorities in mental health, along with other areas. The authors point out that Native youth perspectives are rarely prioritized in data collection and analysis. Center Us is an important step in prioritizing Indigenous-led research and utilizing Indigenous research methodologies to assist in the preservation of culture and identity. The data collected helped to shed light on the cultural strengths, resource access, and priorities of Native youth across the country.
Federal Alignment with Research-Based Practices on School-Age Development and Well-Being
Childhood development experts recommend specific practices for afterschool and youth development programs to promote well-being and healthy development, including positive relationships; rich learning experiences and knowledge development; environments filled with safety and belonging; the development of skills, habits, and mindsets; and integrated support systems. This issue brief examines the extent to which federal afterschool and youth development programs are aligned with these recommended practices.
Addressing the Complex Needs of Youth: A Call to Action
Recently released, Addressing the Complex Needs of Youth: A Call to Action is billed as a groundbreaking research report that sheds light on the critical challenges and opportunities in serving youth with complex or high-acuity behavioral needs. The report was developed in collaboration with over 125 human services agencies across 16 states and highlights the urgent need for systemic reform. It presents innovative solutions to better support some of the most vulnerable youth in our communities. This report underscores the immense challenges these agencies face and the innovative practices being used to address them. It captures the current state of services and outlines actionable recommendations to drive meaningful change at the federal, state, and local levels.
Child Mental Health Initiative Releases 2025 Needs Assessment Template and Guidelines
The National Training and Technical Assistance Center for Children, Youth, and Family Mental Health (NTTAC) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) partnered to develop and publish the Children’s Mental Health Initiative Needs Assessment Template and Guidelines. This template aligns with the system of care framework and is designed to assist CMHI grantees to comprehensively evaluate the current landscape of children’s mental health services, identifying critical needs and areas for improvement within systems of care.
Juvenile Law Center’s Youth Advocacy Program Releases Broken Promises: Futures Denied
The first edition of this publication, Broken Bridges: How Juvenile Placements Cut Off Youth from Communities and Successful Futures, issued in 2018, highlighted their experiences with separation from family, strip searches, physical restraints, physical abuse, solitary confinement, and education deprivation. It is reprinted as the first section of the updated report because of the power of youth stories, the persistence of the challenges faced, and the value of their recommendations.
The second edition, Broken Promises: Futures Denied provides a 2024 update, reflecting again on challenges with education and physical abuse, and adding new insights on racial discrimination, LGBTQIA+ bias, gender bias, disability justice, and mental health.
2024 State of the Grandfamilies and Kinship Care Report
Though children thrive in kinship/grandfamilies, they often face serious challenges that can affect their educational success, including finding and accessing mental health services. One of the policy recommendations included in the State of Grandfamilies and Kinship Care Report is for expansion and sustained funding for Kinship Navigator Programs, which connect caregivers to public benefits, legal services, and mental health support. Authors conclude that federal funding should be allocated to help states, tribes, and community organizations develop and evaluate these programs based on evidence-based standards.
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OCMH Research and Data Resources
Key Facts in Youth Mental Health: https://children.wi.gov/Pages/ResearchData/KeyFacts.aspx
Fact Sheets: https://children.wi.gov/Pages/ResearchData/FactSheets.aspx
Data Sources: https://children.wi.gov/Pages/Resources/DataSources.aspx
Research News in Youth Mental Health: https://children.wi.gov/Pages/OCMHNewsletters.aspx
Youth Mental Health Initiatives: https://children.wi.gov/Pages/Resources/ChildrensInitiatives.aspx
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