PolicyWise is exploring the impacts of COVID-19 on mental health services use among youth.
We are excited to share the news that PolicyWise and Dr. Carla Hilario from the University of Alberta are co-leading a research project about equity, youth mental health care, and COVID-19. Our aim is to better understand youth mental health services throughout the pandemic.
We are applying an equity lens to this work. We’re engaging people with lived experiences as youth advisors. We’ll also gather the perspectives of youth, caregivers, and service providers to enhance the relevance of our findings. This two-year project is funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
Our hope is that the study findings can inform decision-making to improve mental health care services for all youth across the country.
The pandemic has led to reduced mental health among young people in Canada. It has amplified barriers to access and availability of mental health care services and supports. COVID-19 has also heightened existing health and social inequities.
With this project, we're contributing critical knowledge about the impacts of the pandemic on youth mental health services. We're specifically:
- Examining the extent and impact of COVID-19 on access to mental health care services.
- Identifying effective interventions to address the pandemic's impact on mental health care and mental health outcomes among youth.
- Improving preparedness for future pandemics.
- Enhancing knowledge around the equity impacts of COVID-19 on youth mental health.
