Youth Mental Health Recovery in the Family After Inpatient Stay

Not yet recruiting

• Conditions: Caregiver Burden; Family Characteristics; Parent-Child Interactions

• Registration Number: NCT06865573
• Lead Sponsor: University of Vienna

Brief Summary

The goal of this longitudinal mixed-methods study is to investigate caregiver strain, family processes and health outcomes after youth psychiatric inpatient treatment. Caregivers of youth who received inpatient treatment for mental health problems will complete a survey at three timepoints (baseline, 3- and 6- month followup) reporting on youth outcomes, caregiver well-being, and family processes. Qualitative interviews on caregivers' challenges, needs, and resources around the return to home care are conducted with a subsample (target n = 10) of participants.

The main research questions (RQs) are:

RQ 1: Do family processes contribute to youth mental health outcomes after discharge from inpatient treatment? RQ 1a: What family-level risk factors predict youth readmission to inpatient treatment? RQ 1b: Do family processes predict youth mental health trajectories over time? RQ 2: Is there a reciprocal relationship between youth mental health problems and caregiver burden? RQ 2a: Do family processes mediate the association between caregiver burden and youth mental health problems? RQ 3: How do caregivers experience their children's return to home care? RQ 3a: What challenges and needs do caregivers report? RQ 3b: What types of follow-up services do families receive and/or have access to? RQ 3c: How do caregivers cope with ongoing difficulties in the post-discharge period?

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Status Verified: 2025-03
• Study First Submitted: 2025-03-05
• Study First Submitted QC: 2025-03-05
• Study First Posted: 2025-03-10
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-03-12
• Last Update Posted: 2025-03-17
• Study Start: 2025-05
• Primary Completion: 2026-04
• Study Completion: 2026-04

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 70

Inclusion Criteria

• 18 years or older
• primary caregiver of a child or adolescent aged 7-21 years of any gender who received inpatient treatment in a psychiatric institution in Germany, Austria, or Switzerland (min. 24 h stay) within the past month (regardless of the diagnosis or the reason for the treatment, respectively)
• lived with the child or adolescent in the same household since discharge

Exclusion Criteria

• another caregiver of the same child has already participated in the study
• insufficient knowledge of German

Study & Design

• Study Type: OBSERVATIONAL
• Study Design: Not specified

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Inpatient readmission	Within 6 months	Occurrence (and admission date) of inpatient mental health treatment after discharge
Youth mental health	Change from baseline (T0) to 3-month (T1) and 6-month (T2) follow-up	Caregiver-reported youth internalizing and externalizing problems (assessed using the Pediatric Symptom Checklist)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Youth health-related quality of life	Change from baseline (T0) to 3-month (T1) and 6-month (T2) follow-up	Quality of life related to self-esteem, school, and peer relationships (assessed using the KINDL-R)