Digital peer support and prevention tools for youth in foster care
CASA and FostrSpace: Systems delivery of digital substance use prevention tools to foster youth
This project offers a co-designed app that gives foster youth tailored substance use prevention resources, peer support, and links to mental health services.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California, San Francisco NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (San Francisco, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11362575 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would use FostrSpace, a smartphone/web program co-created with foster youth to deliver prevention content, help navigate services, and connect you with peers who have lived experience. The team is working with child welfare and behavioral health partners to make the app part of routine care and to tailor content to the realities of foster youth. They will pilot the system, collect feedback from youth, track how people use the app, and monitor connections to services. Data will include user surveys, in-app usage logs, and service linkage information to see whether the support reaches youth and reduces risk factors for substance use.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are youth with current or recent experience in foster care who are interested in prevention resources and have access to a smartphone or internet.
Not a fit: Youth without reliable phone or internet access, those not involved in foster care, or those needing intensive inpatient substance use treatment may not benefit from this digital prevention program.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the program could expand access to prevention and peer support and help reduce substance use and unmet mental health needs among youth in foster care.
How similar studies have performed: Digital behavioral interventions and peer-support programs have shown promise for young people, but combining system-level delivery with foster-youth co-design is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
San Francisco, United States
- University of California, San Francisco — San Francisco, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Tolou-Shams, Marina — University of California, San Francisco
- Study coordinator: Tolou-Shams, Marina
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.