Examples of how I approach complex implementation, evidence synthesis, and systems strategy.
Understanding Child & Youth Mental Health Through a Systems Lens
Sector: Mental Health
Client: Regional Child & Youth Mental Health Initiative
Focus: Evidence Synthesis | Systems Analysis | Service Mapping
Deliverable: Regional planning assessment
Context
A regional initiative sought to better understand child and youth mental health services across southeastern New Brunswick, with a particular focus on children aged 8-12. The goal extended beyond identifying available programs. The project aimed to understand how population needs, service availability, and the broader service system intersected to inform early-stage planning and future service development
The presented several analytical challenges. Mental health information specific to children aged 8-12 was limited, requiring the use of proxy indicators related to well-being, school experiences, lifestyle, and socio-economic conditions to develop a more complete picture of need. Service information was also dispersed across numerous organizations and public sources, making it difficult to understand how existing supports aligned with regional needs.
Approach
I developed an analytical framework that integrated population data, service mapping, and systems analysis into a single assessment. While the initial approach emphasized national datasets and academic literature, I recognized that provincial data offered a much stronger foundation for regional planning. The analysis drew primarily on data from the New Brunswick Health Council, allowing for geographically specific insights and meaningful comparisons across communities.
Rather than treating population data and services inventories as separative exercises, I examined how they interacted by exploring relationships between community needs, geography, service availability, and levels of intervention across the continuum of prevention, community-based, clinical, and crisis supports.
Key Insights
Several consistent patterns emerged.
- A missing middle for children aged 8-12. Few services were intentionally designed for this age group, creating a gap between universal prevention and high-acuity clinical care.
- Geographic variation in access. Services were concentrated primarily in urban centres, with more limited local access in rural communities.
- Schools as a critical access point. School played a central role in early identification and support, although resources and experiences varied across the region.
- Equity considerations. Access to clinical services was influenced by factors including socio-economic status and language, highlighting important equity considerations for future planning.
Why It Mattered
The assessment provided an evidence-informed foundation for regional planning by connecting population needs with the structure and distribution of available services. Rather than simply identifying service gaps, it highlighted opportunities to strengthen continuity across prevention, community-based, and clinical supports while improving coordination across the broader system.
I led the design, analysis, and synthesis or the assessment, integrating multiple sources of evidence into a structured planning resource that translated complex information into practical insights for decision-makers.
Reflection
One of the most important lessons from this project was that effective service planning requires more than understanding population needs or cataloguing available programs in isolation. Meaningful system improvement depends on examining how needs, available services, and system design influence one another. By bringing these perspectives together, organizations are better positioned to understanding not only where gaps exist, but why they exist and where coordinated action is most likely to improve outcomes.