This session brought together a panel of speakers to showcase projects, resources, and tools centered around engaging youth and young people who use cannabis and other drugs. Presenters spoke to the barriers that young people who use drugs (YPWUD) experience in healthcare settings, challenges and opportunities in engaging YPWUD and provide insight into how clinicians and service providers can better serve or engage these groups. This webinar was designed for professionals, educators, policymakers, healthcare providers, community leaders, youth workers, and anyone interested in promoting constructive conversations and services for young people who use drugs, with a focus on cannabis and its wider context.
Watch the recording to:
- Hear voices from the field and youth perspectives,
- Learn about the impact of stigma on the experiences of YPWUD in healthcare settings
- Support YPWUD in making informed choices about their substance use.
Moderated by:
Rebecca Haines-Saah, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary. She is a public health sociologist, with a PhD (2008) in Behavioural Health Sciences and Addiction Studies from the University of Toronto. Her research interests are in public health and harm reduction approaches to substance use and drug policy reform. Her recent projects have focused on youth and young adult cannabis use and opioid use, the family contexts of substance use, and parent advocacy for action on Canada’s overdose death emergency.
Presentations by:
- Trevor Goodyear (he/him), RN, MSN, MPH is a registered nurse and PhD candidate in the School of Nursing at the University of British Columbia. His research is in youth mental health and substance use, with a focus on work with youth experiencing overlapping structural inequities. For Trevor’s dissertation, he is using participatory photography methods to examine the intersection between homelessness and substance use among 2S/LGBTQ+ youth. Alongside this work, Trevor is an active member of the TRACE Youth Cannabis Research Program.
- Michelle Johnson (she/her), R.N., BScN, BSc.AT has been a Public Health Nurse for 23 years. She has worked in many areas of Public Health including Control of Infectious Diseases, Child and Family Health and the Healthy Living division where the focus has been on working with children and youth in the areas of mental health, physical activity, substance use including opioid and cannabis education and most recently on concussion awareness and prevention.
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Hareem Ashraf, BScN, BSc graduated this September with an Honours Bachelor of Science in Nursing from York University and previously received an Honours Bachelor of Science in Mental Health Studies from the University of Toronto. She works in various roles including writing, research, leadership, and mental health advocacy. She is passionate about increasing access to mental health resources and support within community settings.
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Kiah Ellis-Durity (she.they) is a Co-Project Manager for Get Sensible, a project by Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy. Kiah studied Comparative Religion and Political Science at Concordia University. They have been involved in several harm reduction initiatives, working with organizations like CSSDP, The Heart Tattoo Society, Tides of Change - Community Action Team, and The Cannabis and Mental Health Project. Kiah ensures their work is rooted in community, whether it is regarding harm reduction, drug policy reform, housing, food justice or social wellness. She aims to continue her work in reducing barriers around drug education and harm reduction. In their free time Kiah likes to nap, play rugby, and felt.
- Noor Hadad (she/her) is a substance use and mental health advocate, focusing on harm reduction and recovery, drawing from her own lived experience. She earned her B.A. (Honours) in Psychology from the University of Calgary, and currently works as the Research Coordinator for a program on campus supporting students and staff with substance use concerns. Noor is also one of the Project Leads with Get Sensible, a national campaign on youth drug education, part of Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy.