Alberta Health Services (AHS) are wanting to inspire youth to keep their health and wellness in mind as they age.
The AHS Youth Council to Promote Nutrition for Better Health was started as a way to fill a gap, said Sheila Tyminski, director in nutrition services for population and public health strategy in AHS.
"We have work that we do that looks at families, children, families with young children, and adults – all these different populations, but we felt that we weren’t really targeting anything really specific to what we would call youth or young people,” she added. “In thinking about that further, what we really felt was the most important was to hear from young people, to have their voice and to engage with them."
It was through brainstorming that the youth advisory council was born.
The council features youth in Grades 10 to 12 from across the province interested in health and wellness.
In order to accommodate students from every corner of the province, AHS went with a virtual council, where they meet via video conferencing.
“That was what formed the basis of it. We wanted to hear youth voice, we wanted to bring them together in a way that we could engage with them and have some really meaningful dialogue,” Tyminski expressed.
The program was created three years ago, and consists of seven to 10 youth.
However, AHS had an outpouring of interest and decided to include a members-at-large category.
“We had quite a few people that applied, so we included members-at-large. If we had a meeting where we were doing an information session or presentation, maybe bringing someone in to speak to the group, we would invite them and there would be different activities that we would include them in. We tried that this last year as well,” explained Tyminski.
For Northern Lights Public Schools board of trustees chair Arlene Hrynyk, "anytime we have students involved in ways that we need to address societal issues, is a bonus, period."
“I think it’s awesome because I think it really piggybacks the efforts that we’re doing as a school division, trying to get our students engaged, involved, and to know that their voices are valuable as decision makers for the pathways to the future to address health, education, and this just does hand-in-hand," she continued.
Mary Anne Penner, chair for the Lakeland Catholic School District board of trustees, agreed.
She noted, this council is in-line with some of the programming schools already have in place to promote health and wellness.
“I think it’s important simply because with so many different things going on in today’s world, oftentimes, young people don’t learn enough about what it means to live a healthy lifestyle. Schools try their best to provide the information, but if it’s not carried out in their homes, or if they don’t see their friends living health lifestyles, it kind of colours what they take home form the school,” Penner stated.
She added, “If we learn to take care of ourselves at an early age and are more aware of what’s going on within our own bodies and how different types of environments affect our body, then we can be healthy and active for a lot longer than we may be otherwise."
AHS is calling on youth interested in participating to submit an application by May 3.
“We’re looking for young people who are interested in nutrition, in health, are interested in leadership… and the ability to participate in a monthly meeting,” Tyminski emphasized.
Participants will attend monthly meetings via Skype to interact with other youth from across the province, share their nutrition concerns with AHS, and give feedback.
Since starting the council, Tyminski said they've heard numerous recommendations from those taking part.
“I’m quite overwhelmed with what we’re hearing from the youth from what they’re getting out of it. These are kids that are really interested in food, health, and nutrition, and they really think they’re learning a lot. They’re learning about leadership, working in a group, working in this kind of capacity. They talk about learning self-confidence."
For more information, or to apply, contact [email protected].
