The African youth in mind (Y-MIND) brief psychological intervention for depression among school-going adolescents in...

Depression is common among adolescents, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, such as Ghana. Yet, access to mental health care in these settings remains limited. There is a need for research to focus on innovative strategies to improve access to care. The African Youth in Mind consortium, together with a group of young people with depression and relevant stakeholders have developed a novel six-session lay professional intervention (Y-MIND) to treat depression.

As part of the early phase of intervention development, we conducted a case series aimed at testing the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary safety of Y-MIND when delivered by a trained clinical psychologist within Navrongo, Ghana. Four adolescents, aged 16-18 years, with a primary DSM-5 diagnosis of major depressive disorder were purposively recruited and received the intervention. The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) was administered at baseline and weekly, and each session audiotaped. In addition, semi-structured interviews were conducted after each session and at two weeks' follow-up. PHQ-9 data were analysed using Stata 17 to generate descriptive statistics. A deductive framework guided the analysis of semi-structured interview transcripts and participant evaluations using NVivo 12.

Three of four adolescents completed all six sessions. The mean session duration was 58 minutes (SD = 12.0). All four participants demonstrated a ≥50% reduction in PHQ-9 scores by end of treatment. Mean PHQ-9 scores decreased from 14.5 (SD = 0.6) at baseline to 2.3 (SD = 4.0) at endline. By the beginning of session five, two participants had PHQ-9 scores ≤5. No participant showed symptom deterioration during the intervention. Qualitative interviews indicated that participants found the intervention understandable and relevant to their context. The interventionist identified areas for refinement, including clarifying sections of the manual and worksheets, addressing variability in remission rates, and strengthening the emphasis on mutual respect within the therapeutic relationship.

The Y-MIND intervention appeared to be feasible, acceptable, and safe for treating depression among senior high students in Ghana. Planned piloting with non-specialists will include adaptations for training, supervision, and fidelity monitoring.

Clinical Trials.gov Trial registration number ID NCT06740084, Trial registration data, December 9, 2024.