Multisystemic Therapy (MST) for Youth Offending, Psychiatric Disorder and Substance Abuse: Case Examples from a UK MST Team.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: The paper illustrates the MST treatment model with three types of presenting problem in young people aged 14-15. METHOD: The MST model is described and then illustrated with detailed case material from a violent young person convicted of robbery, a young person with a history of serious self-harming behaviour and hospitalisation, and a young person persistently smoking cannabis. RESULTS: All three cases improved after the MST intervention despite disparate presenting problems that included re-offending, the elimination of self-harming behaviour and a significant reduction in the use of cannabis. The three young people were re-integrated into the education system. CONCLUSION: This case series illustrates the potential uses of the MST model in CAMHS although RCT data are needed to replicate the effectiveness of MST in the British context.