Kali Brummitt1, Jean Addington1; 1University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
This presentation will first present the clinical staging model used in PROCAN. Secondly, an overview of the study which includes demographics of the sample and measures used will be given. Since the project is focused on adolescents and young adults who may be presenting with mixed symptom patterns or brief or undifferentiated symptoms several months or even years before the development of a diagnosable mental illness, it is important to find ways to identify these young people early so that we can learn more about the factors that may predict later mental illness and offer early intervention. Studies in the clinical high risk for psychosis population have identified strategies on recruitment, but there is little to help with a more general at-risk population. Thus, thirdly, we will present tracking data of the referral sources of all PROCAN participants and compare them by age and by the clinical stage. Referrals were evenly split by gender and age. Most referrals, however, were in stage 1b, individuals who met criteria for an attenuated syndrome, the majority of which were referred by community mental health services. In contrast stage 1a participants with distress, mild anxiety and depression were more often self- or family referred. Implications of referral pathways for identifying youth at risk will be discussed.
