Frequently Asked Questions

The Early Detection and Intervention for the Prevention of Psychosis Program (EDIPPP) is an exciting treatment research initiative with the potential to radically improve the way we address the mental health needs of our adolescents and young adults.

Everyone who learns about EDIPPP has questions. Here, we’ve collected and answered some of the questions put to us most often.

If you have any comments, or if you have a question about EDIPPP not answered here, send an email to info@changemymind.org with “EDIPPPFAQ,” as the subject.

  1. What is EDIPPP?
  2. How does EDIPPP work?
  3. Why are programs like EDIPPP necessary?
  4. How many young people are affected by severe mental illness?
  5. What are the early warning signs of severe mental illness in adolescents?
  6. Who funds EDIPPP?
  7. How does adolescent mental illness impact the overall community?
  8. Why did the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation invest in the EDIPPP approach?

  1. What is EDIPPP?
    EDIPPP is a research treatment program focused on gathering the evidence needed to better meet the mental health needs of adolescents and young adults at risk for severe mental illness, before the full expression of that illness.

  2. How does EDIPPP work?
    Using evidence-based practices, EDIPPP seeks to determine if the progression of psychosis can be halted in order to minimize its negative impacts.

    Our research is focused on the early emergence of symptoms that indicate the likelihood of future mental illness without intervention. We then work with patients to help them acquire the skills that can allow them to achieve their full potential without the trauma, stigma and negative effects of a fully developed illness.

  3. Why are programs like EDIPPP necessary?
    Adolescents treated through EDIPPP exhibit indicators of the most severe mental illnesses. The severity of these signs, in fact, can have a proportionately greater impact on them as individuals, on the families they belong to, the communities they reside in, and the health and social service systems charged with caring for them.

    The evidence being collected also has meaningful positive implications for the development of mental health services across the board – especially for our youth.

    By examining the needs of, and seeking solutions for, the most severely impacted segment of the adolescent population, we are collecting important information that can inform the diagnostic and intervention services of the mental health field in general, and deliver benefits to everyone.

  4. How many young people are affected by severe mental illness?
    Recent figures report that one in ten young Americans suffer from mental illness – with less than half receiving the necessary treatment. Other estimates indicate that approximately four million young people nationwide suffer from a severe mental disorder.

  5. What are the early warning signs of severe mental illness in adolescents?
    Many experts agree that a combination of specific behaviors may be indicators of a developing mental illness.  These behaviors include:

    • Moodiness, depression and/or paranoia
    • Withdrawal from friends and family
    • Sleep and appetite problems
    • Emotional disturbances
    • Defiance of authority
    • Hyperactivity and agitation
    • Delusions and hallucinations

     

  6. Who funds EDIPPP?
    EDIPPP is funded through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and forms part of that organization’s Vulnerable Populations Portfolio.

    The Foundation’s stated aim is to seek to improve both the health of everyone in America and their health care—how it’s delivered, how it’s paid for, and how well it does for patients and their families.

  7. How does adolescent mental illness impact the overall community?
    For our communities, the ramifications of adolescent mental illness are serious: an increased burden on the existing health system, the maintenance or growth of a population that is dependent upon our social systems for its survival, a perpetuation of unfair stigmas and labels, and an overall decline in the quality of our communities.

  8. Why did the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation invest in the EDIPPP approach?
    EDIPPP builds on the success of a previous program – the Portland Identification and Early Referral (PIER) program at the Maine Medical Center – which is a very successful and well supported endeavor at early detection and intervention for youth at risk of psychosis.

    At the same time, numerous studies undertaken in other countries have indicated the efficacy of this approach. From Australia to Denmark, projects have concluded that early diagnosis and intervention programs show great potential.