For youth receiving mental health care, turning 18 marks a significant transitionary period to the adult system.​ Systemic barriers such as resource constraints, fragmented systems and intersectional challenges can impede continuity of care.​ While progress has been made toward improving transitional-aged youth (TAY) pathways, the volume of stakeholders, research and initiatives has created a complex landscape without clarity on where the sector stands today or where the largest impact can be made tomorrow.

Capitalize for Kids, a non-profit consulting group, and Bridgeable, a service design firm, recently engaged a working group of providers and researchers across community, hospital and government sectors to define the current state and co-create a roadmap to impact. This workshop invites you to:

• Explore the provincial landscape and case studies of TAY service provision from the perspective of youth/families;
• Engage in a participatory exercise to validate recommendations and next steps for advancing impact.

Learning Objectives

1. To gain a comprehensive understanding of the experience and intersectional challenges faced by transitional-aged youth (TAY) and their families.
2. To explore current innovative TAY initiatives and best-practice approaches in the Ontario CYMH sector.
3. To validate and discuss actionable next steps and tangible takeaways as to what is needed to improve TAY services at the service provider, organizational and sector levels.
4. To learn validation and prototyping techniques that can be applied in community engagement, co-design or problem solving within an organization and across stakeholders.