Young people with depression and borderline personality disorder (BPD) have equally low levels of engagement in employment and education when compared to young people with first-episode psychosis, a new study has found.
The research, led by Dr Kelly Allott at Orygen, the National Centre in Youth Mental Health, compared levels of engagement in education and employment among young people with psychosis, depression and BPD.
Dr Allott said the results illustrated the need for interventions that would improve employment and educational outcomes for young people with these mental disorders.
“Although poor participation in employment and education has been well documented among young Australians experiencing their first episode of psychosis, it has not been known how this compares to the experiences of young people with depression and borderline personality disorder,” Dr Allott said.
To answer this question the research team looked at the education and work status of young people with depression, BPD and psychosis at the time they first had contact with a youth mental health service.
The research has been published in Community Mental Health Journal.
“What we found was that, regardless of diagnosis, young people presenting to a specialist mental health service were having a lot of difficulty with their work and study,” she said.
“The onset of mental illness, particularly in adolescence, can disrupt active participation in work and study, potentially limiting future attainment of more skilled jobs and lowering both employment status and income expectations.”
“There has been a great deal of research into interventions that will improve participation in employment and education for young people experiencing psychosis; but we now need to look at interventions for other diagnostic groups – for depression, and for BPD.”