B.C.鈥檚 top doctor says special attention needs to be paid to children and youth impacted by pandemic, and how that could relate to substance use.

Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Thursday (Feb. 1) there鈥檚 limited data currently on substance use among children and youth, but 鈥渨e need to do better on addressing the spectrum for youth and young adults who disproportionately suffered鈥� from the measures put in place over the last few years during the COVID-19 pandemic.

鈥淲e need to pay attention to that because we know mental health and anxiety issues in teenagers and young adults have increased, and these are being exacerbated. We know that when mental health issues go up, the use of substances to help deal with those issues also goes up.鈥�

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Those findings were part of a report to government on Thursday from Henry who had been tasked with reviewing B.C.鈥檚 prescribed safer supply program. In the report, it noted that safer supply could include potential harms, such as the supply being diverted to groups it wasn鈥檛 intended for: children and youth.

While 鈥渟ome diversion is occuring,鈥� the extent of the impacts are unknown and the report added that B.C.鈥檚 Representative for Children and Youth Jennifer Charlesworth said 鈥渢here is no indication鈥� from available data that children and youth have been using diverted safer supply medications at a significant scale.

According to the report, diversion of hydromorphone has been reported by staff and clients and a 鈥渃ommon occurence,鈥� possibly due to some people using the program already have a high opioid tolerance. Some safer supply clients reported diverting their hydromorphone in order to obtain other substances that better meet their needs.

鈥淲here we鈥檝e had, for example, very high rates of fentanyl for a long time, and people who have a very high tolerance to high doses of opioids, and were prescribed safer supply with the limited options that were available, (hydromorphone) was not a very effective tool for the vast majority of people there,鈥� Henry explained.

The report adds there are anecdotal reports that have suggested youth 鈥渕ay increasingly be accessing diverted hydromorphone,鈥� however current B.C. data doesn鈥檛 show an increase in opioid-use disorder among that age group.

Henry called for a 鈥渃entralized ability鈥� to collect the data that is out there around children and youth, their mental health and substance use. She said she believes there needs to be opportunities for young people to make up 鈥渇or what they鈥檝e been through over the last few years, to give them economic opportunities, opportunities for connection with peers, for culturally safe connection with elders for indigenous youth.鈥�

In her recommendations, Henry also called for a greater emphasis should be placed on monitoring the safer supply program for unintended consequences, including primary data collection with youth about their use of substances generally and their access to diverted medications.