Youth with substance use problems in British Columbia are faced with a piecemeal service system that can leave them for long periods of time without adequate or available services as they try to access treatment, finds a new report released by Representative Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond.
A Review of Youth Substance Use Services in B.C. calls on the provincial government to recognize the magnitude of the issue by creating a single point of leadership that would collaborate with regional health authorities on a strategic plan focusing on prevention, early intervention and residential treatment. This plan must include adequate resources to develop and implement a comprehensive system of substance use services, with specific attention paid to the service-delivery needs of Aboriginal youth and families.
