Canadian cannabis education resources to support youth health literacy: A scoping review and environmental scan

Abstract

Background: The 2018 legalisation of cannabis in Canada sparked concern and conversation about the potential negative impacts of youth cannabis use. It is clear that young people are already engaging in cannabis use for a variety of reasons; therefore, youth cannabis education is desirable to promote harm reduction and reduce the risk of adverse physical and mental health outcomes. Objective: To identify and categorise Canadian cannabis education resources using a social-ecological approach informed by the youth health literacy framework, considering multiple factors at the micro-, meso- and macro-levels that influence health literacy and impact behaviour. Methods: In line with scoping review methodology, database searches and an environmental scan of materials were completed. Specific inclusion criteria were identified to encompass all Canadian cannabis education resources directed towards young people aged 9–18 years and adults in contact with youth. Results: A total of 60 resources were identified and categorised using the youth health literacy framework in terms of their focus on (1) micro influences (resources for youth); (2) meso influences (resources for teachers, parents, mentors); and (3) macro influences (resources for indigenous communities and medical professionals). Conclusions: While many resources were identified, issues exist with the accessibility, quality and multicultural considerations of such resources, warranting the development of comprehensive, evidence-based and harm reduction–focused cannabis education for youth.

Facilitators of and barriers to healthcare providers’ adoption of harm reduction in cannabis use: a scoping review protocol

“…The emergence of these programmes has been also influenced by policies such as the ‘War on Drugs’ 23. The abstinence-based model forms the basis of many programmes developed to prevent or treat problematic cannabis use and has been applied with at-risk or marginalised populations (eg, youth in the foster care system) 21 24. Despite its potential to decrease the frequency or amount of substance use, the abstinence approach presents limited evidence to support its effectiveness and has been criticised for various reasons 21 24–26.…”

“…The abstinence-based model forms the basis of many programmes developed to prevent or treat problematic cannabis use and has been applied with at-risk or marginalised populations (eg, youth in the foster care system) 21 24. Despite its potential to decrease the frequency or amount of substance use, the abstinence approach presents limited evidence to support its effectiveness and has been criticised for various reasons 21 24–26. First, it does not provide PWUC with the necessary skills to identify and mitigate the harms associated with their use 21 27.…”

A survey of educator perspectives toward teaching harm reduction cannabis education

“…Despite the availability of such resources, there are gaps in existing harm reduction cannabis education in Canadian schools [ 17 , 25 , 26 ]. Canadian provinces and territories are individually responsible for developing and providing health education, so there is no standardized cannabis education across the country [ 27 ].…”

“…In a post-cannabis legalization qualitative study exploring youths’ cannabis health literacy, youth expressed dissatisfaction with the scare tactic messaging employed by abstinence-based education and reported learning little about cannabis in school, often obtaining information from social media or peers [ 17 ]. In a recent scoping review and environmental scan that identified Canadian cannabis education resources [ 25 ], many resources were identified but there were issues with accessibility, quality and multicultural considerations. Most education resources were not formally evaluated, and there was limited school-wide programming.…”