Objective: A consortium of 8 academic child and adolescent psychiatry programs in the United States and Canada examined their pivot from inperson, clinic-based services to home-based telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic. The aims were to document the transition across diverse sites and to present recommendations for future telehealth service planning. Method: Consortium sites completed a Qualtrics survey assessing site characteristics, telehealth practices, service use, and barriers to and facilitators of telehealth service delivery prior to (pre) and during the early stages of (post) the COVID-19 pandemic. The design is descriptive. Results: All sites pivoted from in-person services to home-based telehealth within 2 weeks. Some sites experienced delays in conducting new intakes, and most experienced delays establishing teleÀgroup therapy. No-show rates and use of telephony versus videoconferencing varied by site. Changes in telehealth practices (eg, documentation requirements, safety protocols) and perceived barriers to telehealth service delivery (eg, regulatory limitations, inability to bill) occurred preÀ/postÀCOVID-19. Conclusion: A rapid pivot from in-person services to home-based telehealth occurred at 8 diverse academic programs in the context of a global health crisis. To promote ongoing use of home-based telehealth during future crises and usual care, academic programs should continue documenting the successes and barriers to telehealth practice to promote equitable and sustainable telehealth service delivery in the future.

COVID-19 restrictions have necessitated child/youth mental health providers to shift towards virtually delivering services to patients’ homes rather than hospitals and community mental health clinics. There is scant guidance available for clinicians on how to address unique considerations for the virtual mental healthcare of children and youth as clinicians rapidly shift their practices away from in-person care in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, we bridge this gap by discussing a six-pillar framework developed at Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, for delivering direct to patient virtual mental healthcare to children, youth and their families. We also offer a discussion of the advantages, disadvantages, and future implications of such services.

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The aim of this poster is to engage youth about their social media use and its impacts by using an innovative electronic self-report Social Media Initial Questionnaire-Revised (SMIQ-R), developed by the authors (MF, RS, CG, CP). Over 90% of US youth use social media, which has been linked to influences on self-esteem, mood, and behavior. The poster will present data on youth during increased social distancing and necessary isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Fifty psychiatry clinic patients, ages 8 to 20 years (48% males), completed the de-identified SMIQ-R by Google Forms using their cell phones. The SMIQ-R contains questions pertaining to social media and electronic use, mood, behavior, and school, reflecting use during the COVID-19 pandemic in June 2020. Results: Forty percent of participants felt that their level of sadness was more, 54% reported their level was the same, and 6% reported it was less. Thirty-four percent of participants felt that their level of anxiety was more, 56% reported their level was the same, and 10% reported it was less. Twenty-four percent of participants reported sleeping more, 56% reported sleeping the same amount, and 20% reported sleeping less. Participants reported that the biggest changes in their lives since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic are staying at home, losing school, more sadness, more anxiety, and homeschool. Missing their friends and school, being sad, and not being able to go outside were the factors that participants reported are making their lives harder during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixty-two percent of participants prefer appointments with their psychiatrist in person, 24% preferred video or phone, and 6% reported that they liked both. Conclusions: The SMIQ-R Google Forms mobile phone modality proved to be user-friendly, efficient, and well-liked by youths. The most consistent consequence of the pandemic reported by youths is that they miss school as well as their friends. Many youths reported more anxiety and sadness since the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixty percent of youth reported that social media currently interferes with homework, almost 50% reported interference with sleep, 33% reported interference with school, and surprisingly, social media rarely interferes with family.