Lived Experience Initiatives
July Highlights
July was another busy month for our Lived Experience Network as members continued to shape youth mental health research through meaningful lived experience engagement. From contributing to research projects and ethics discussions to helping improve our network and sharing new opportunities, council members played an important role in advancing youth mental health initiatives.
Advancing Youth Mental Health Service Evaluation
Members from the teen, youth and loved ones councils met with Dr. Bastian Bertulès Esposito, Dr. Roxane Sicotte & Dr. Kim Archambault, who are involved with the French branch of the International Association for Youth Mental Health. In the meetings, they explored how youth mental health services should be measured. Together, they discussed what information should be collected, how it should be gathered, and what factors contribute to meaningful evaluation.
The insights shared by council members will help inform ongoing research and contribute to work that will be presented at the upcoming IAYMH Conference in Dublin.
Research Update from
Dr. Zavaglia & Dr. Joober
Our youth council received an update from Dr. Zavaglia and Dr. Ridha Joober on their project using digital continuous clinical monitoring to improve care for youth experiencing first-episode psychosis, which council members had previously helped shape through lived experience consultation.
The research team is currently awaiting a response from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). Once the funding decisions are announced, the team plans to incorporate council members’ feedback—including what participants found valuable and their recommendations for improvement—into the final Ministry report. This feedback will help guide future work.
Exploring Ethics in Youth Mental Health Research
Council members also met with Dr. Franco Carnevale to discuss ethics in youth mental health research and practice.
This conversation marked the beginning of a new collaboration focused on integrating lived experience perspectives into ethical decision-making. Council members will continue to contribute their perspectives as the project develops.
Co-designing Our Council Onboarding Process
As the Lived Experience Network continues to grow, our team has been developing a more comprehensive onboarding process for new council members.
In keeping with our “nothing about us without us” approach, members reviewed the proposed onboarding materials and shared thoughtful feedback. Their suggestions were compiled and synthesized, and we followed up by demonstrating how their input directly informed revisions and shaped the next steps.
Sharing Opportunities for Learning and Engagement
Throughout the month, council members received information about a range of national and international opportunities to participate in research, knowledge exchange, and professional development.
These opportunities included:
The International Association for Youth Mental Health (IAYMH) Conference
Wellcome Heat and Health Researcher Meeting and the Global Heat Forum in Bangkok, Thailand
The International Fellowship Symposium in Berlin on Climate Change, Mental Health, and Migration
Recruitment for a research study exploring romantic relationships among young adults living with mental health challenges
By connecting members with these opportunities, we continue to support meaningful engagement beyond council meetings while strengthening connections across the youth mental health research community.