BRIDGING THE MENTAL HEALTH ACCESS GAP: THE ROLE OF CALL CENTERS IN DELIVERING YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES IN NAIROBI, KENYA (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Mental health issues among young people have become increasingly prevalent, with potentially severe consequences for their well-being and societal development. Kenya faces a significant mental health burden, characterized by high rates of mental disorders among adolescents and young people. Despite the growing need for accessible mental health services, challenges such as limited information dissemination, unclear community support pathways, and shortages of trained health professionals persist. Call centers play a critical role in improving access to mental health services by offering anonymity that reduces stigma, enhancing triage through crisis intervention, and optimizing resource allocation by prioritizing urgent cases. OBJECTIVE The study examined the influence of call centers on the delivery of mental health services among young people in Nairobi County, with a focus on crisis intervention, round-the-clock availability, resource sharing, and follow-up mechanisms as key determinants of effective service delivery. METHODS Grounded in the Information Systems Success Model and Lean Thinking in Healthcare, the study adopted a descriptive cross-sectional research design. The study population comprised healthcare providers affiliated with the one2one call center, from whom a sample of 112 respondents was selected using simple random sampling. Data were collected using structured questionnaires and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics with SPSS version 25. RESULTS The findings revealed significant positive correlations between crisis intervention and mental health service delivery, as well as between crisis intervention and round-the-clock availability, resource sharing, and follow-up. Round-the-clock availability was also significantly associated with resource sharing, follow-up, and mental health service delivery. Resource sharing demonstrated significant relationships with follow-up and service delivery, while follow-up showed a positive and statistically significant correlation with mental health service delivery. CONCLUSIONS The study concludes that call centers significantly enhance the delivery of mental health services to young people in Nairobi County through effective crisis intervention, continuous availability, efficient resource sharing, and structured follow-up processes. Strengthening crisis intervention strategies through staff training, ensuring sustained 24-hour human support services, promoting coordinated resource sharing among stakeholders, and developing supportive policies for digital referral systems are recommended. Further research is warranted to assess the effectiveness of call center interventions, examine the influence of technological advancements, and explore beneficiaries’ perspectives on how these components independently impact mental health outcomes. CLINICALTRIAL N/A