Parenting Interventions for Child Mental Health: The Science and Practice of Measurement-Based Care

Evidence-based parenting interventions (EBPIs) are among the most powerful interventions in child mental health, but they are often impacted by non-response and drop-out. Extensive research has demonstrated that measurement-based care (MBC), which involves routine collection of client-reported measures to track intervention progress and inform shared decision-making, is associated with improved outcomes in adult mental health populations, including reduced rates of deterioration and drop-out. Comparatively, there has been little research on MBC in child mental health. MBC is inherently more complex and nuanced in EBPIs for child mental health due to the need to collect and integrate data from multiple caregivers, therefore the application of MBC requires careful consideration. This paper presents key considerations and recommendations for the effective implementation of MBC in EBPIs, with a focus on the application of the Collect, Share, Act Model (Barber & Resnick, 2022). Key considerations and recommendations are provided for: (1) collecting multi-informant data, (2) selecting measures, (3) administering measures, (4) sharing and integrating multiple and discrepant perspectives, (5) examining trajectories of change in EBPIs, (6) using MBC data to optimise clinical decision making and intervention planning, (7) considering organisational factors that may affect implementation, and (8) using MBC with culturally and linguistically diverse populations. A new framework is provided, the Parenting CIRCLE of MBC, to guide how MBC data can inform clinical decision making to personalise EBPIs to the needs and preferences of families.