Piloting a Near-Peer Lay Counselor Based Problem Solving Therapy Intervention for Youth With and Without HIV in Botswana: An Adaptation of the Friendship Bench.
The adolescent mental health treatment gap is a significant public health challenge, especially in low-resource settings where services are often adult-oriented. The Safe Haven intervention, adapted from Zimbabwe's Friendship Bench, addresses this gap by leveraging near-peer youth lay counselors tra...
| Published in: | Journal of Adolescent Health Vol. 78; no. 4; pp. 639 - 648 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
| Format: | research Journal Article |
| Published: |
Elsevier B.V.
Apr2026
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| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=192259981&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 192259981 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 1054139X ILK jtl: Journal of Adolescent Health issn: 1054139X maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Apr2026 vid: 78 iid: 4 pid: 467 pub: Elsevier B.V. place: New York, New York artinfo: ui: 192259981 192259981 192259981 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2025.12.260 192259981 ppf: 639 ppct: 9 formats: tig: atl: Piloting a Near-Peer Lay Counselor Based Problem Solving Therapy Intervention for Youth With and Without HIV in Botswana: An Adaptation of the Friendship Bench. aug: au: Brooks, Merrian J. MacLean, Sarah A. Eschliman, Evan L. Poku, Ohemaa B. Molebatsi, Keneilwe Ahmed, Charisse Morakanyane, Phenyo Entaile, Patlo Monyane-Pheko, Makhetha Morapedi, Kealeboga Phoi, Onkemetse Tshume, Ontibile Benton, Tami D. Matshaba, Mogomotsi Lowenthal, Elizabeth D. affil: Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania sug: subj: Mental Health Services In Adolescence Peer Group Counselors Problem Solving HIV-Positive Persons Friendship Program Evaluation Treatment Outcomes Child Adolescence Adult Botswana Questionnaires Scales Pretest-Posttest Design Human Wilcoxon Rank Sum Test Anxiety Depression Child: 6-12 years Adolescent: 13-18 years Adult: 19-44 years ab: The adolescent mental health treatment gap is a significant public health challenge, especially in low-resource settings where services are often adult-oriented. The Safe Haven intervention, adapted from Zimbabwe's Friendship Bench, addresses this gap by leveraging near-peer youth lay counselors trained in Problem-Solving Therapy. This study evaluates the feasibility and outcomes of Safe Haven across three sites in Botswana. Participants aged 12–25 years (N = 115) were recruited from clinical and community sites. Pre-intervention and post intervention assessments using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, and Shona Symptom Questionnaire measured depression, anxiety, and common mental disorder symptoms. Pre/post differences in scores were statistically tested using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Significant reductions were observed in all mental health outcomes. Over four to six sessions (4–16 weeks), median Patient Health Questionnaire-9 scores decreased from 6 (interquartile range [IQR] 4–11) to 1 (IQR 0–3) (p <.001), with 78% showing improvement, and moderate depression symptoms reduced from 29% to 3%. Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scores decreased from 9 (IQR 7–12) to 2 (IQR 0–7), with 86% improving, and moderate or severe anxiety symptoms declined from 47% to 9%. Shona Symptom Questionnaire scores decreased from 10 (IQR 7–14) to 1 (IQR 0–4) (p <.001), with 93% improving. Safe Haven demonstrates potential in addressing Botswana's youth mental health needs, including underserved groups such as younger adolescents and those living with HIV. Although limitations include the prepost design and small sample size, findings support further scaling and controlled evaluations to optimize impact across diverse settings and populations. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: research Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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