Overview
The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on mental health and substance use, with both positive and negative changes. Researchers are working to understand what factors influence mental health and substance use responses to the pandemic and how to promote recovery.
The COVID-19 and Youth Study interviewed cohorts of young people in British Columbia and Ontario, Canada, and in Ireland to understand how the pandemic affected their mental health and substance use. The study began in spring 2020 and continued into 2022 to capture changes in experiences over time.
The study was led by Dr. Skye Barbic (Head Scientist at Foundry and Associate Professor at University of British Columbia), Dr. Jo Henderson (Executive Director of Youth Wellness Hubs Ontario (YWHO) and Director of the McCain Centre for Child, Youth & Family Mental Health at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)) and Dr. Aileen O’Reilly (Research and Evaluation Manager at Jigsaw – The National Centre for Youth Mental Health).
Funders
This study was supported by funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
Resources
- Whyte M, Nichol E, Hawke LD, Wuerth K, Quinlan-Davidson M, O’Reilly A, Duffy J, Mathias S, Henderson JL, Barbic SP. (2024). Supporting young people through the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond: A multi-site qualitative longitudinal study. BMC Health Services Research. 24(1):1266.