Evaluating a Social Work Engagement Approach to Involving Inner-City Children and Their Families in Mental Health Care

This article will focus on increasing the ability of social workers to provide mental health services to urban, low-income children and their caretakers. A conceptual model for understanding the process of engagement will be presented. Further, a protocol for training social workers to conduct first interview/engagement interviews and the results of a study evaluating its impact will be highlighted. One hundred seven children and their families were randomly assigned to one of two conditions: (1) first interviewers trained in specific engagement skills, and (2) other therapists within an urban mental health agency. Of the 33 children assigned to first interviewers, 29 (88%) came for a first appointment and 97% (n = 28) of those returned for a second appointment. In comparison, of the 74 clients assigned to the routine first interview condition, 47 (64%) came for an initial appointment and only 83% (n = 39) returned for a second appointment. The average length of treatment during an 18-week study period for first interview subjects was 7.1 sessions, as opposed to 5.4 sessions for the comparison group. The applications of this model for social work education are discussed.