Young people with depression are not alone.

That was the message in early June when 150 psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, educators, policy makers and others in child and youth depression gathered in downtown Toronto for New Directions for Adolescents and Young Adults with Depression, a #CundillatCAMH Conference.

It’s an important message, because it demonstrates that young people with depression have a strong team behind them. There’s now a significant interest in developing new treatments, while the field has seen few introduced in the past 40 years. There’s commitment to developing evidence-based care plans that ensure young people get the right care at the right time – every time. There’s a global team of experts that collaborates and comes together to learn from one another.

Young people played an important role in delivering the message through very personal and moving spoken-word poetry about their own experiences with mental illness. Through youth involvement, conference-goers gained a greater understanding of the work still ahead.

If you weren’t able to make the New Directions for Adolescents and Young Adults with Depression conference, not to worry – we’ve captured the highlights in this video. You can also download conference presentations.

Photo: Dr. Kathy Georgiades presents at the Cundill Centre

The second talk of the Cundill Centre Speaker Series was held in May. Dr. Georgiades presented “Prevalence and Correlates of Child and Youth Mental Disorder and Service Utilization in Ontario.” Here are three take-away points:

1. The prevalence of child and youth mental disorder is high in Ontario.
2. Child and youth mental health treatment gaps are large and disproportionately affect certain demographic groups.
3. Schools represent the most common setting from which children and youth receive services for mental health concerns.

Dr. Georgiades holds the David R. (Dan) Offord Chair in Child Studies and is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences at McMaster University and the Offord Centre for Child Studies.

What excites you about the field of child and youth depression?
What excites me are the “what next” questions that are being asked about child and youth depression. We have effective, evidence-based treatments, but they don’t work for everyone. We are now asking “what's next” for those children and youth who do not benefit from these treatments, or who don’t engage in these treatments in the first place. We are trying to understand how and why certain treatments for children and youth don’t work by better understanding what “treatment resistance” means and by identifying the barriers and unintended negative consequences of treatment. This improved understanding of those children and youth whose depression does not improve with treatment will help us refine and innovate our interventions and holds promise for further evolving the field of child and youth depression.

What’s the most interesting thing about you that’s not on your resume?
I love the expressive arts. I’ve been doing creative writing and modern dance for many years.

What excites you about the field of child and youth depression?
Depression is an illness that touches all aspects of a child's life. It can affect their friendships, school work, performance in extra-curricular activities, sleep, appetite, their relationships at home and their physical health. Worst of all, depression affects how children feel about themselves and their futures. The most exciting part of the field of child and youth depression is the opportunity it presents to meaningfully impact the health and the lives of children and families in a positive way.

What’s the most interesting thing about you that’s not on your resume?
I am a big baseball fan!