Every two years, people across Washington eagerly await the results of the latest Healthy Youth Survey. For those of us working in prevention and public health, we often find ourselves holding our breath until we know if certain data points went up or down in the direction we hope. Some years, we find ourselves wondering whether we should celebrate or weep. This was one of those years.
The 2023 data looks fantastic in some ways. It tells the story of 10th grade past 30-day cannabis, alcohol, and tobacco use either going down or remaining steady compared to previous years. Yet, at the same time, when we look at certain vulnerable populations like BIPOC (black, indigenous, and other people of color) or LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer/questioning,... read more