News
Report on the Mental Health Needs and Experiences of Young Adults with Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities
The YELL Lab recently completed a PCORI-funded project identifying the mental health experiences and needs of young adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities and co-occurring mental health conditions. This work was conducted in partnership with the Arc of the United States and Self-Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE).
You can read about the work in the Arc's report. This report also includes information the Arc learned by conducting focus groups across the United States.
Webinar about mental health services for young adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities
The YELL Lab partnered with the Arc of the United States, Self Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE), self advocates, and professionals from across the United States to form the Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities and Mental Health (IDD-MH) Research Partnership.
The IDD-MH Research Partnership was created to learn about the experiences and needs of young adults with IDD-MH while accessing and using mental health services. This webinar reviews eight priority topic areas for young adults with IDD-MH and recommendations to advance research and practice in areas important to young adults with IDD-MH.
You can sign up to see the webinar for free a this link: Free webinar
Or you can view the slides here: Webinar slides
Participant recruitment for a study about the activities you do!
Dear Youth and Parents,
We are looking for children with cerebral palsy, ages 8-12 to take pictures of activities in their everyday lives.
We want to learn more about the activities you do, so we can make a questionnaire for kids and young adults with cerebral palsy. The questionnaire is a list of questions about activities you do. Doctors or therapists might use it with other children and young adults to find out what activities are important to them to work on in therapy.
We will meet with you at your home or other place that is easy and comfortable for you. We will make sure the activities are easy and fun.
We will give you a digital camera to use. If you finish all the study activities, you can keep the camera. You will also receive a $100.00 gift certificate.
If you are interested in learning more, contact Wendy Coster. She is in charge of this study at Boston University. She can answer questions and help you decide if your child wants to be involved. You can reach her at yellbulab@gmail.com, 617-353-7492.
Contact her today to be part of this study and share your opinion. Thank you!
YELL Lab Publications
The YELL Lab has several new publications.
Publications about Project TEAM describe peer mentoring by young adults with intellectual disabilities and an evaluation of Project TEAM's social validity. You can also read about Project TEAM peer mentoring in an AAIDD blog post.
Parents also may need help identifying environmental barriers, so we evaluated the usability of a health-literacy informed problem-identification approach for parents of young children with developmental disabilities.
We also applied our framework for cognitive accessibility of patient reported outcome measures to review pediatric patient reported outcome measures for accessibility design features.
The Daily Free Press features the PCORI award received by Dr. Kramer.
Dr. Kramer received a $50,000 award from the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) to build a national partnership to identify the mental health priorities of young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. This partnership is co-lead by The Arc of the United States, and includes collaboration with national self-advocacy groups including Self Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE) and Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN).
This project was featured in The Daily Free Press, the independent student newspaper at Boston University. Check out the news.
Commentary on YELL Lab Research
Read about the research community’s commitment to including youth with intellectual disabilities in assessment development and commentary on YELL Lab Research.
YELL Lab presents webinar about peer mentoring for the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Dr. Kramer and Melissa Levin presented a national webinar for American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities describing feasibility of implementing the electronic peer mentoring component of Project TEAM (Teens making Environment and Activity Modifications). Link to the webinar.
Dr. Kramer featured by the Center for Translation of Rehabilitation Engineering Advances and Technology
Dr. Kramer was featured on the Center for Translation of Rehabilitation Engineering Advances and Technology's (TREAT) website. Dr. Kramer was awarded a grant by TREAT to engage in a customer discovery process. This process helped further the YELL Lab's understanding of how market demands may impact the future adoption of the PEDI-PRO.
Dr. Kramer Presents at a webinar for Partners for Youth with Disabilities (PYD) Youth mentoring national project
Watch Professor Kramer's talk Demonstrating our Value: Effective administration of the evaluation battery.
This webinar was conducted as part of the “Disability Mentoring Initiative” led by Dr. Kramer’s collaborators, Partners for Youth with Disabilities (PYD). The goal of this multi-state initiative is to improve outcomes for at-risk youth in mentoring programs by providing supported mentoring opportunities for youth with disabilities at risk for juvenile delinquency in expanded high quality, evidence-based mentoring.
This project was supported by Grant # (AWARD NUMBER: 2016-JU-FX-0013 ) awarded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.
The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this publication/program/exhibition are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the Department of Justice. All reports and products may be required to display the OJJDP logo on the cover (or other location) with the agreement of OJJDP. OJJDP defines publications as any planned, written, visual or sound materials substantively based on the project, formally prepared by the award recipient for dissemination to the public.
Project TEAM materials are now available!
We’re excited to share that Project TEAM materials are now available!
What is Project TEAM?
- Project TEAM is a theory-based intervention that empowers youth with developmental disabilities ages 14-22 to identify and advocate for environments that support their participation in school, work, and the community.
- Project TEAM is a 12 week group-based intervention designed to be co-facilitated by an experienced leader with a disability (disability advocate) and a licensed service provider (such as an occupational therapist, social worker, or educator).
- Project TEAM was developed by a group of partners at Boston University that includes Dr. Jessica Kramer and a panel of youth and young adults with disabilities.
What do we provide?
- Facilitator’s manual that includes the introduction to Project TEAM and detailed directions for each module
- Workbook for trainees
- Slide show, videos, and all learning activity materials
How can I get Project TEAM materials?
Thank you for your interest in Project TEAM! Please send us an email to request materials!