Self-Harm in Adolescents: ResilienceSTART Program

"Our mission is to empower parents, educators, and caregivers, fostering a resilient community where every adolescent can thrive emotionally and mentally. Together, our team strives to create a strategic solution towards minimizing the risk of self-harm in adolescents and maximizing their potential for growth and well-being."

The rates of self-harm in adolescents living in Hamilton are on the rise, with 246 visits to Emergency Departments in 2021 for children and youth aged 4 to 18. This indicates an alarming average of around five cases per week, with higher rates among females. While self-harm can manifest at any age, the typical onset occurs between 14 and 15 years. However, it is essential to recognize that individuals of all ages may struggle. In many cases, self-harm serves as a negative coping mechanism. Acts of self-harm, such as cutting, burning, hitting, or piercing the skin, are prevalent and vary by person. It's crucial to clarify that self-harm doesn't equate to suicide, yet it heightens the risk. This risk may escalate when individuals find self-harm ineffective or become desensitized to pain. As such, addressing the current rates of self-harm and developing prevention strategies is a priority. The goal is to create environments that promote mental well-being and establish protective factors.

What does Human Centred Design mean to us? Human Centred Design means a wide variety of things to us. It is an approach to designing and developing products and solutions with a primary focus on the end users' needs, preferences, and experiences. It means having a user focus, that their needs, comfort, and preferences should be a guide throughout the entire prototyping and design process. It means taking chances and risks, not being afraid of iteration, and knowing that it will take more than just one design for it to work. We must be able to engage with users to get feedback and make improvements to ensure our product is the best final version of itself. Overall, it means taking a holistic approach to problem-solving, thinking about and including everyone in our design process.

Implementing targeted parenting initiatives and school collaborations to prevent adolescent self-harm aligns with both health and education goals of the Sustainable Development Goals. It promotes mental well-being (Goal 3) and fosters supportive environments for quality education (Goal 4), contributing to healthier communities overall.

Research conducted on inquiry questions:

Hospital Admissions: Monitor the number of hospital admissions related to self-harm. A decline in hospital admissions for self-harm cases suggests that preventive measures or early interventions may be working. Self-Reported Surveys: Administer anonymous surveys to teens to collect self-reported data on self-harm behaviours and thoughts. This can provide valuable insights into changes in attitudes and behaviours over time.

Our experience with MacChangers was incredibly enriching and impactful. Our team was comprised of students from various faculties allowing each of us to bring diverse perspectives and skill sets to the table. This proved invaluable in tackling the complex challenge we chose to address. One of the most significant benefits of participating in MacChangers was the opportunity to work closely with our student mentor and community partners. Their guidance and expertise helped us better understand the HMWQ and provided insights into developing viable solutions. Throughout the program, we engaged in rigorous research, spoke with community members, and collaborated closely to brainstorm, iterate, and refine our solution. The process of ideation and prototyping allowed us to think creatively and critically, ensuring that our solution, ResilienceStart, was both innovative and feasible. Presenting our project at the annual MacChangers showcase will be the highlight of our experience. It will provide us with a platform to share our work with members of the McMaster and Hamilton communities.