June 21, 2021
Congratulations to Dr. Jennifer Baumbusch, a recipient of the COVID-19 Child, Youth & Family Mental Health Impact Grant along with Angela Clancy, Executive Director of the Family Support Institute of BC.
Mental Health Research Canada (MHRC) and the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research (MSFHR) co-fund the grant, which is endorsed by the BC Ministry of Children and Family Development. According to the MHRC, the grant was introduced in consideration of the view that "the COVID-19 pandemic has affected all Canadians’ mental wellness, but those with complex family needs have struggled even more due to decreased engagement with mental health services."
"The call went out for applications for a grant that had to be co-led by an academic lead and a community partner,” says Dr. Baumbusch. "I applied as academic lead with Angela Clancy as the community partner. Only one grant was offered in BC and our team was the successful applicant!”
The $50,000 grant supports a project with an impressive level of community involvement from across the province. Dr. Baumbusch is equally proud of the inclusion of parents as co-researchers along with other members of the team including, clinicians, researchers, trainees, and organizations engaged in providing mental health supports to families across BC.
According to Dr. Baumbusch, the team "will be undertaking an environmental scan of existing programs and promising practices that have been introduced during the pandemic and also conducting a province-wide survey of parents/caregivers of children and youth with support needs in BC. We anticipate the research will illuminate the unique mental health issues for this population and we will create an inventory of programs and promising practices that may mitigate the impacts of the pandemic."
The results of this investigation will be released to the public at a later date.
