Rikke Kirstine Kristensen

What is the title of your thesis?

From Model to Practice: Cross-Sectoral Collaboration in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry from an Implementation and Evaluation Perspective.

At which department and/or research unit did you complete your PhD?

I completed my PhD at the Research Unit for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Who was your principal supervisor?

Clinical Professor Niels Bilenberg.

What question did you aim to answer with your thesis?

How is a cross-sectoral collaboration model experienced by families and professionals in child and adolescent psychiatry, and are we measuring what actually matters?

What did you find?

That models alone do not create collaboration, and that alternative and broader measures of success are needed for evaluation to be meaningful.

How did you do it?

Through a comprehensive evaluation combining qualitative insights from families and professionals with a feasibility study examining the use of meaningful outcome measures in practice.

How can your research be applied (in the clinic, society, etc.)?

• Clinical practice: Provides insight into what constitutes meaningful collaboration for families and professionals, and what is required to make cross-sectoral collaboration work in practice.
• Research contribution: Offers a foundation for designing more robust studies and developing outcome measures that better capture the complexity of cross-sectoral collaboration.
• Societal contribution: Contributes to the development of more coherent and sustainable service models, aiming to ensure that more families experience integrated and coordinated care pathways during assessment and treatment.