Abstract

The Improving Youth Mental Health & Suicide Prevention Program is a program designed to be used within the school and community setting, with young people as the agents for change. Young People are trained as peer educators which provides them with accurate and up-to-date information they can then pass on to their peers in both informal and formal ways. The peer education process has given the peer educators the opportunity to develop skills in identifying mental health risk factors and to develop networks of general practitioners and other youth service providers that they can use successfully to gain help and assistance. The program is designed to increase young people's access to health care through General Practice. It is based on a collaborative approach encompassing the whole community.