Improving Social Inclusion for Young People Affected by Mental Illness in Uttarakhand, India

Young people experiencing mental ill-health are often excluded from peer networks, family events, education, marriage and employment. We evaluated a community-based, peer-led intervention guided by the Nae Disha (new pathways) program, targeting young people affected by mental ill-health in Uttarakhand, India. A total of 11 groups involving 142 young people (30 male, 112 female) and 8 peer facilitators participated, most of whom were enrolled in a community mental health program. The impact of the intervention on participation, mental health, and social strengths and difficulties was measured at baseline and endline using validated instruments. The proportion experiencing significant social isolation reduced from 20.6 to 5.9% (p < 0.001), and those classified in the 'abnormal' range of the social difficulties measure halved from 42.6 to 21.3% (p < 0.001). These findings clearly demonstrate that perceptions of social inclusion and mental health of young people affected by mental illness can be significantly strengthened through participation in this low-resource intervention.