Enhancing Access for Immigrant and Refugee Families: A Conceptual Pathway Framework for the Integration of Social and Mental Health Services for Immigrant and Refugee Families.

While Canada has established a robust settlement program, significant limitations remain in developing coordinated, integrated, responsive, and sustainable service pathway systems. Contributing challenges include limited awareness and underutilization of pre-arrival and settlement services, as well as a predominant focus on short-term "basic" resettlement needs rather than on long-term mental health and primary service supports. Using a community-based participatory research and mixed-methods research design, we co-designed a concept-to-practice Service Pathways Model comprising four core components: (1) a centralized referral database, (2) a systems navigator role, (3) mobilization of pre-arrival services, and (4) integrated social and health post-arrival services. The proposed model has the potential to: (i) strengthen referral loops, (ii) reduce service fragmentation, (iii) enhance coordination and integration across systems, and (iv) promote positive mental health, resilience, and settlement outcomes among newcomers in the Region of Peel (Canada) and similar contexts experiencing significant newcomer influxes. Further refinement and pilot testing of the model is recommended to assess its implementation feasibility, effectiveness, and underlying theory of change. Such findings will inform how coordinated service pathways can strengthen the responsiveness and sustainability of Canada's settlement system and improve outcomes for immigrant and refugee families.