Evaluating the MyDAWN Pathway: Strengthening Connections Between Primary Care and Community Mental Health Services

Introduction and Aims: MyDAWN (Depression, Anxiety, Wellness, Navigation) is an evidence-based, stepped-care pathway designed to strengthen child and youth mental health support in primary care. Developed through interagency collaboration in South Georgian Bay, Ontario, Canada, MyDAWN equips clinicians with measurement-based tools (e.g., HEADS-ED and RCADS), integrated into electronic medical records for seamless navigation and referral. MyDAWN helps primary care providers navigate children and young people who present to the Georgian Bay Family Health Team (GBFHT) with mental health concerns to appropriate community-based services, including New Path Youth and Family Services (New Path), the region’s lead agency for child and youth mental health. The evaluation team conducted a mixed-method implementation evaluation of the MyDAWN pathway to determine pathway uptake and examine implementation barriers and facilitators.

Methods: We assessed administrative and program-level data collected between June 2023 and December 2024 by GBFHT and New Path. Key informant interviews guided by the Theoretical Domains Framework were conducted with 8 primary care providers and 5 mental health clinicians between December 2024 and March 2025.

Results: As of March 2025, 74% of primary care providers have adopted the MyDAWN pathway and have screened over 415 young people. Over half of the young people screened were connected with community-based services, with 59% referred to New Path for group therapy. On average, clients were connected to their first session at New Path within four weeks of referral (28 days in 2023; 27 days in 2024). During key informant interviews, both primary care providers and mental health clinicians expressed strong pathway buy-in and reported that the evidence-based assessment tools support clinical decision-making. Primary care providers additionally reported that the pathway has meaningful goals and adds practical value.

Discussion: Given the high uptake and positive clinician perceptions, the MyDAWN pathway demonstrates the impact of cross-sector collaboration in strengthening child and youth mental health pathways within primary care.