# Building Capacity for Youth Mental Wellness: Feasibility and Acceptability for a Mental Health Family Navigator Model for Foster Parents.

> **NIH NIH R34** · NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $200,000

## Abstract

Goal: This R34 study will pilot the Family Navigator Plus (FN+) program for foster parents to
increase access to mental health (MH) services for children in foster care aged 6-17.
Background: Youth in care experience disparities in mental health symptoms and access to
treatment. Compared to the general child population, children in foster care are 4-5 times more
likely to attempt suicide, and about 3 times more likely to have experienced trauma or have a
diagnosed depressive or anxiety disorder. About half of children in foster care exhibit clinically
significant MH needs, but less than a quarter of those children receive MH services. Those who
do – experience delays in seeking treatment. Significance: This project will pilot the FN+
program to promote treatment engagement by building foster parent capacity to 1) recognize
their child’s specific MH needs and address any preliminary barriers to treatment; 2) work with
the child’s caseworker to engage the child in mental health services; 3) manage the child’s
difficult behaviors; 4) remove remaining barriers to treatment access and use digital mental
health tools during long waits for treatment, and 5) support treatment goals at home.
Innovation: The proposed project is innovative in five ways. First, we plan to conduct the first
pilot of a family navigator program in one of the highest-risk populations for developing
psychiatric disorders: children in foster care aged 6 – 17 years. Second, we will pilot the use of
a trained Community Health Worker in the family navigator role as a sustainable and cost-
effective method to promote early MH treatment access. Third, we will provide rapid feedback
regarding MH assessment results to promote foster parent understanding of child functioning
and early treatment engagement. Fourth, we will use telehealth to facilitate family navigator
access in areas with less access to support services. Fifth, we will help parents to find digital
mental health tools to use during long waits for treatment. Design: Human-centered design and
an open trial will inform a subsequent small randomized controlled clinical pilot to test the
feasibility of the study protocol in preparation for a larger randomized controlled trial (RCT).
Population: Foster parents of youth in care aged 6 to 17-years. Outcomes: All aspects of the
study protocol (e.g., condition allocation, treatment and control condition procedures, data
collection, etc.) will be operationalized in preparation for the subsequent RCT. The primary
outcome is increased foster parent activation in the foster child’s mental health care. Secondary
outcomes include reduced barriers to treatment access and perceived change in child behavior.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10986513
- **Project number:** 1R34MH134941-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Christina Lynn Boisseau
- **Activity code:** R34 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $200,000
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-09-13 → 2027-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10986513

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10986513, Building Capacity for Youth Mental Wellness: Feasibility and Acceptability for a Mental Health Family Navigator Model for Foster Parents. (1R34MH134941-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10986513. Licensed CC0.

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