dr. skye pamela barbic: young people are not the covid-19 problem, they are the solution

there has been an emerging narrative in the media, social media, and community attributing responsibility to youth for covid-19 community transmission. what british columbians are not considering is how young people are being left out of “quarenteen” decision- and policy-making.this summer, young people are treading water while juggling multiple roles, including caregivers for younger siblings and older family members. many are living in homes that are dealing with illness, loss of income within their households, and are being forced to take on more demanding roles. as we approach a return to school and routine in the fall, young people need to be at the forefront of decision-making that will directly affect their health and wellbeing.the challenge with supporting young people during the pandemic lies not in a lack of services, funding, or creativity, but rather a lack of youth engagement in deciding how messages and public health initiatives are designed, delivered, and evaluated. b.c. models such as foundry are leading the way in our country to forge a new, pan-canadian culture of care by investing in youth engagement and creating evidence-based interventions, online tools, and resources designed for and by youth. in order to empower young people to buy into public health measures related to covid-19, their voices need to be heard.before the pandemic, roughly one in four b.c. youth aged 15 to 24 years were impacted by mental health and substance use challenges every year. compounded by the overdose crisis, emergency department visits, hospitalization and suicide in youth have been on a sharp rise since 2007. the latest data from the canadian institute for health information show emergency department mental health visits for patients aged 12 to 24 have increased by 85 per cent since 2007. between 2009 and 2014, hospitalizations related to self-harm increased by 102 per cent for girls aged 10 to 17 — a rate four times higher than for boys. sadly, the death rate due to illicit drug overdose among young people is at its highest (160 b.c. young people in 2020 alone).context matters. to date, a lack of diverse youth engagement in decision making and policy threatens any potential for flattening any of these curves. b.c. youth are trailblazers in promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion. they are innovators in environmental solutions and social justice. they need an opportunity to be leaders in their own health and planning for their return to school in the fall. young people are brilliant at health system navigation, and most are playing a key role to teach adults how to use technology to access health services and stay connected to friends and families during the pandemic. without creating space for young people to be heard, the stigmatization of their perceived “irresponsible” behaviours will continue.b.c. has an opportunity to engage young people and their circles of care in designing and communicating a plan for the fall, including evidence-based public health measures and policies for returning to school. responsible youth-centred public health measures are likely to empower young people, prioritize their role as leaders in the response to the pandemic, and ultimately lead to improved outcomes for the population at large.skye barbic is an assistant professor at the department of occupational science and occupational therapy at the university of b.c.

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