The CASH Bundle: A Standardized Screening Assessment Bundle for Child and Youth Mental Health, Addictions…

Cohort studyCanadian journal of psychiatry. Revue canadienne de psychiatrie· Mar 2026

The CASH Bundle: A Standardized Screening Assessment Bundle for Child and Youth Mental Health, Addictions, and Substance Use Health Implemented in a Regional Coordinated Access and Service Navigation Program: L'ensemble CASH : outil normalisé de dépistage pour la santé mentale, les dépendances et la santé liée à l'utilisation de substances chez les enfants et les jeunes, mis en œuvre dans le cadre d'un programme régional coordonné d'accès et de navigation des services.

Scott J Robson, Paula F Cloutier, Christine Polihronis … Mario Cappelli

Child Development & BehaviourCohort studyClinical practiceQ1IF 3.2

CASH screening bundle referrals were accepted by services 94.4% of the time.

The CASH Bundle: A Standardized Screening Assessment Bundle for Child and Youth Mental Health, Addictions, and Substance Use Health Implemented in a Regional Coordinated Access and Service Navigation Program: L'ensemble CASH : outil normalisé de dépistage pour la santé mentale, les dépendances et la santé liée à l'utilisation de substances chez les enfants et les jeunes, mis en œuvre dans le cadre d'un programme régional coordonné d'accès et de navigation des services.

Scott J Robson … Mario Cappelli

Canadian journal of psychiatry · Mar 2026

Purpose

To explore how the screening tools align with each other and with Level of Need , an assigned designation used to indicate acuity, needs, and guide service recommendations.

Methods

Between May 31, 2021, and December 31, 2023, 8,280 clients aged 6-21 were administered the CASH screening tool bundle (CASH is an acronym for the included screening tools, the C RAFFT, Ask Suicide Questions { AS Q}, H EADS-ED (Over 6 and Under 6) and assigned a Level of Need (used to describe acuity and guide referrals).

n = 8,280 clients

94.4%

Results

94.4%

referring services accepted the vast majority of CASH-guided referrals

n = 8,280 clients

More results

We observe a significant moderate correlation ( r (8,280) = .507, p < .001) between the total HEADS-ED score and the assigned Level of Need and significant differences in HEADS-ED total score between each Level of Need (F (4, 8,275) = 766.810, p < .

Additionally, ASQ and CRAFFT results align with the Suicidality and Drugs and alcohol domains of the HEADS-ED.

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Conclusion · 1 of 3

The CASH screening tool bundle is effective for screening child and youth MHASUH concerns.

Conclusion · 2 of 3

The HEADS-ED can give a non-specialist healthcare provider an overview of the nature and acuity of child and youth MHASUH and guide the application of more specialized tools included in the bundle.

Conclusion · 3 of 3

Used as described in this manuscript, the standardized screening bundle is a useful means for assessing needs and guiding referrals to specialized care, including in-depth specialized assessments.

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