{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ScholarlyArticle","headline":"Clinical Utility of the Sports Mental Health Assessment Tool in NCAA Collegiate Athletes.","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Vicki R Nelson"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Christina Gutta"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Raphaela Fontana"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Bailey Nevels"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Wesley Averill"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Ruth Amaku"},{"@type":"Person","name":"James Anderson"}],"datePublished":"2026","isPartOf":{"@type":"Periodical","name":"Clinical journal of sport medicine : official journal of the Canadian Academy of Sport Medicine"},"identifier":"https://doi.org/10.1097/JSM.0000000000001411","description":"\n Objectives:\n This study evaluates the performance of the International Olympic Committee's Sports Mental Health Assessment Tool-1 (SMHAT-1) in a collegiate athlete population. The SMHAT-1 was introduced by the International Olympic Committee in 2021 as a mental health screening tool in elite athletes. Recent studies have shown high false-negative rates in elite athletes but the tool has not been previously evaluated in a population of collegiate athletes.\n \n \n Design:\n Cohort study.\n \n \n Setting:\n National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) collegiate athletic institutions.\n \n \n Participants:\n 1.631 collegiate athletes (NCAA division 1 and 2).\n \n \n Intervention:\n Athletes underwent mental health screening including the triage and follow-up Form 2 components of SMHAT-1 during preparticipation evaluation.\n \n \n Main Outcome Measure:\n Sensitivity and specificity of Athlete Psychological Strain Questionnaire (APSQ) triage for detection of positive Form 2 screening.\n \n \n Results:\n 9.7% of athletes were positive in the AQSP triage phase, while 41.8% were positive on at least 1 Form 2 instrument. The APSQ had a 19% sensitivity and 97% specificity for follow-up screening. 81% of athletes with a positive follow-up screen were missed during triage.\n \n \n Conclusions:\n Sequential screening using SMHAT-1 ASPQ and Form 2 steps results in a high false-negative rate. APSQ showed low sensitivity for positive Form 2 follow-up screening. The false-negative rate of 81% is concerning as a triage step for the detection of mental health concerns in collegiate athletes. We do not recommend the use of SMHAT-1 for mental health screening in collegiate athletes without modification.\n ","url":"https://innscience.ca/en/community/literature/doi_10_1097_jsm_0000000000001411"}