Abstract:
INTRODUCTION: Many care-experienced young people face significant mental health
challenges. However, this group is not well served by child and adolescent mental health
services. In this first of a two-part series, we present the evidence for effective mental health
interventions for care-experienced young people to inform clinical decision-making and
improve mental health service delivery. This precedes a second review of principles for working
effectively with care-experienced young people.
METHODS: This is a narrative review of the literature regarding mental health interventions for
young people involved with child welfare. It is based on international reviews of mental health
interventions with the addition of relevant research from Aotearoa New Zealand, especially with
Ma¯ ori young people.
FINDINGS: Appropriate mental health interventions include Trauma-Focused Cognitive
Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy, Wraparound, and assertive outreach
approaches, as well as systemic interventions that work with the whole care system around a
young person. Application of each of these interventions to meet the specific needs of careexperienced youth in Aotearoa New Zealand is discussed. The findings are also relevant to
other jurisdictions with overrepresentation of Indigenous young people involved with child
welfare services.
CONCLUSION: Individual and systemic interventions are recommended that can support
holistic mental health care. There is little integration of cultural considerations and antidiscriminatory practice within the existing literature, despite many of these young people coming
from marginalised communities. The authors argue that mental health interventions must be
culturally appropriate to meet the needs of care-experienced young people.