Curriculum Overview

ECHO Child and Youth Mental Health is dedicated to the advancement of community healthcare. We aim to empower community healthcare professionals by providing evidence-based knowledge and resources that are integral to caring for paediatric patients with pain, obesity, medical complexity and palliative care needs.

All ECHO sessions include a brief didactic presentation on various practice related issues, followed by a Q&A period and a patient case discussion. Topics are selected based on a comprehensive needs assessment and feedback from our participants, and are developed by experts in the respective areas.

Curriculum Topics

Our core curriculum is broken down into Mental Health Toolbox Competencies and Clinical Competencies, and we have two "didactic on demand" sessions which are determined by the continuous feedback and suggestions from our Learning Partners.

Mental Health Toolbox Competencies

• Enhancing Delivery of Mental Health Care for Patients
• Motivational Interviewing (MI)
• System Navigation
• Parent-Child Relationships
• Sleep Problems

Clinical Competencies

• Aggression in Children and Youth
• Anxiety in Children and Youth
• Depression in Children and Youth
• Inattention and Impulsivity
• Learning Disabilities
• Stress and Trauma
• Self-Harm and Suicide
• Somatization
• Eating Problems and Disorders
• Obsessions and Compulsions
• Cannabis

Previous Didactic On Demand Topics

• School Refusal
• Therapeutic Alliance
• Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
• Technology and Screen Time

In addition to our regular 24-week education cycles, we coordinate several special interest sessions each year, on topics that are of interest to our Learning Partners and the wider public. We often collaborate with other ECHO sites, specialists and community health experts. 

Past Special Interest Session topics have included:

• Resilience
• Eating Disorders
• Gender Diversity
• Child and Infant Mental Health 
• Trauma Informed Care
• Psychopharmacology