Sustaining evidence-based practice for young people who self-harm: a 4-year follow-up

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: In 1998 and 1999, two NSW Area Health Services conducted the Youth At Risk of Deliberate Self Harm (YARDS) project. The YARDS project was designed to implement evidence-based service enhancements for the clinical management of young people with Deliberate Self Harm. This paper examines the extent to which service enhancements implemented during YARDS were maintained 4 years after the conclusion of the project and compares service quality with another NSW Area Health Service that did not participate in the YARDS project. METHOD: Staff from mental health services and emergency departments completed the Service Activity Scale, a measure developed for the YARDS project to assess the quality of health service response to individuals who present following a suicide attempt. RESULTS: RESULTS indicated that the service improvements made during the YARDS project were maintained 4years after the project ended. Furthermore, a significant difference was found between scores for services that participated in YARDS and services that did not participate in YARDS. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that projects such as YARDS which support evidence based service nhancements may be useful in improving the management of young people with deliberate self-harm, and that these improvements may be long-lasting.