Young people in the Southern Isles are less positive about mental health, says a survey

Just over half of South Vancouver Island teenagers rated their mental health as fair or good in a recent survey, which is a big drop from five years ago.

In 2023 B.C. A youth health survey conducted by the McCreary Society found that 58 percent of young people in the region rated their mental health as fair or good, down from 71 percent in 2018 and 80 percent in 2013.

The BC-wide survey was released in February, with 16 regional reports — including southern Vancouver Island — released Friday. The South Vancouver Island results come from students in the Greater Victoria, Sooke, Saanich and Gulf Island school districts.

More than a quarter of the teenagers surveyed said they have an anxiety disorder.

They are also more likely than other BC youth to have tried tobacco, alcohol and cannabis.

The McCreary Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the health of the region’s youth through research and evaluation, has conducted the survey seven times since 1992, with the first completed in 2018.

The 2023 survey, administered in schools by public health nurses, reached about 38,500 youth ages 12 to 19 in 59 of BC’s 60 school districts.

McCreary Society executive director Annie Smith said the 2023 survey was the first since the COVID-19 pandemic “and I think it really highlights the impact that has had on some young people.”

“It was concerning to see in this area that a quarter of students had missed school in the last month because of their mental health,” Smith said. “And 20 percent didn’t participate in sports or other extracurricular activities because they felt they were too nervous or depressed.”

Smith added that more than half of the youth surveyed in the area who felt they needed to access mental health services did not want their parents to know — and 14 percent said their parents had refused to seek them out.

“I think it tells us that we should be working with young people and their families to address any stigma or concerns they have about accessing support,” she said. “We need to make sure that everyone who thinks they need help knows where to get that help and that it’s okay to reach out.”

One positive finding is that more youth said they have an adult they can turn to with a serious problem than five years ago, Smith said.

Seventy-five percent of South Vancouver Island respondents said they trusted an adult in their life, up from 71 percent in the 2018 survey.

“Having a supportive adult in their life can be a huge protective factor for young people, so it was encouraging to see that the majority of young people had at least one adult they could turn to in a crisis,” said Smith.

“We know that young people are much more likely to report positive outcomes if they have such an adult in their lives. Not only are they more likely to report positive health and well-being now, but they are also more likely to feel disappointed and have positive plans for the future.

Also in the regional report, 81 percent of men reported good or excellent health, compared to 69 percent of women and 44 percent of non-twin youth.

As was the case in the provincial results, the regional report for South Vancouver Island found that youth were less likely than they were five years ago to report being connected to their family – 54 per cent, down from 60 per cent in 2018.

The regional report also found that 65 percent of respondents felt safe at school, compared to 77 percent in 2018, while 70 percent said they had three or more close friends, down from 82 percent in 2018.

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