Youth Mental Health Fellowships

Jessica Stubbing case study

Jessica Stubbing is a 2021 fellow from New Zealand. Jessica is a clinical psychologist and research fellow passionate about an improved mental health system through youth participation in service development and design.

Jessica’s project idea for youth participation in service development and design came from her PhD research and her own lived experience. Jessica’s idea was clear and there was a need within the community for this type of work, however she was unsure on how to engage with the right stakeholders, apart from those in academia, to bring her idea to life.

Throughout the first three months of the fellowship, Jessica attended modules which helped her to understand the importance of academic research and lived experience knowledge, to communicate why her project was important.

Jessica worked closely with her peer mentor, Jenny, who had extensive experience in creating and managing partnerships. Her mentor supported Jessica to tailor her pitch to three definitive stakeholder groups – clinicians, health services and policy makers.

In the final three months of the fellowship, the modules supported Jessica with more tangible skills such as impact evaluation, fundraising, and increasing her social media presence. These modules, alongside the input of her expert mentor, supported Jessica to translate her research publications into a policy white paper, and provided opportunities for Jessica to speak about her project to policy makers and on broadcasted television.

The fellowship journey also contributed to Jessica’s decision to move into a policy-focused youth mental health role with Koi Tū: The Centre for Informed Futures and work with the New Zealand Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission.