”Alla måste få chansen att blomma” : En kvalitativ studie om hur skolkuratorer arbetar med ungdomars psykiska ohälsa och deras samverkan med andra professioner

Sammanfattning: The purpose of this study was to investigate how school counselors describe their work with youths mental illness and how they experience the collaboration of the work with other professions. The study presented three main questions and was based on a qualitative approach. Six semi-structured interviews were held with school counselors to answer the three main questions. The collected material from the interviews was then analyzed through a qualitative content analysis and then interpreted using the concepts of collaboration and empowerment. The results showed that all respondents had a common view that mental illness among young people has increased. School-related pressure, social media, the Covid-19 pandemic and different forms of disabilities are described by the respondents as factors that can lead to mental illness in individual students. The respondents described that many students need help through individual counseling, however, there was a desire among the respondents to work more preventively and health-promoting at group level. The result also showed a broad picture of collaboration as the school counselors described themselves as having a large number of contacts with students and parents as well as professional groups such as teachers, social workers and police. Student-health and collaboration with teachers were highlighted as important parts of collaboration in reference to young people's mental health. The study's conclusion results in the school counselor having an important role for young people with mental illness, both by being the one who intercepts and supports but also by cooperating with other professions.