Oakland, California, Jan. 10, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Youth Mental Health Tracker (YMHT), a multi-year project led by Surgo Health, weaves together surveys, data, and personal narratives to uncover key insights to help drive equitable change toward a future where youth mental health is prioritized and nurtured. Ultimately, the YMHT’s data will be used to reach those who can influence health outcomes, including policymakers, advocates, educational institutions, and direct service providers. To ensure the Tracker centers the needs, voices and experiences of young people, Peer Health Exchange has assembled a dedicated cohort of their Youth Advisory Board to co-design the tracker. The 11 participants, aged 13-19, come from various backgrounds across the country, meet weekly on the project, and are incentivized for their work.
Joleen Wong, a member of the Youth Advisory Board, expressed her enthusiasm for the project, stating, “I thought this was a great opportunity to have my voice heard about youth experiences regarding mental health. Mental health awareness is extremely important to me because I’ve seen how a lack of self-care has decreased my focus and happiness in doing hobbies I usually enjoy. This project with Surgo Health has allowed me to not only share my personal experiences and opinions but also understand the perspectives of other youth across the nation. I’m now equipped with more knowledge that can assist me with my goals of becoming a physician and leading a healthy life at the same time.” Maxwell Mook, another Youth Advisory Board member, added, “We cover issues such as academic stress, family dynamics, and depression.”
Recognizing the disproportionate impact of the youth mental health crisis on marginalized and traditionally underrepresented groups, the YMHT aims to center the voices of BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and economically disadvantaged youth. Working hand-in-hand with Peer Health Exchange, Pivotal Ventures, MTV, and other esteemed collaborators, Surgo Health will integrate new data from equity-forward surveys, existing contextual data, and passively tracked data from social media, as well as personal accounts and narratives gathered through qualitative interviews and focus groups. This comprehensive approach will ensure that the tracker captures both mental illness and well-being, shedding light on the mental health inequities faced by marginalized youth and advocating for equitable solutions.
“We are honored to be partnering with Peer Health Exchange in the development of our Youth Mental Health Tracker (YMHT). The Youth Advisory Board is such an integral piece of this important project, and we are so grateful for their collaboration and input. This partnership is more than just a collaboration; it’s a commitment to fostering resilience and positive change for our younger generation,” said Dr. Sema Sgaier, CEO and Co-founder of Surgo Health. The YMHT initiative is a multi-year project. The results and insights gained during this initial phase will inform subsequent years’ activities. Surgo Health envisions continued collaboration with Peer Health Exchange for years 2 and 3, further advancing the mission of addressing mental health inequities among youth.
“We’re thrilled to collaborate with Surgo Health to help us better understand and address the realities of what young people are experiencing across the US,” said Dr. Angela Glymph, CEO of Peer Health Exchange.
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About Surgo Health
Surgo Health is a technology company and Public Benefit Corporation (PBC) that aims to revolutionize the effectiveness of healthcare by understanding people’s behavior at the individual level. Surgo Health believes that a complete understanding of what drives people’s behavior – and how their context impacts them – is critical to ensure every person lives a healthy life. The company’s proprietary data and AI-novel technology platform creates the most comprehensive socio-behavioral profile of every person in every place, with products and solutions that can help its pharma and payer customers drive performance while improving outcomes, reducing cost and addressing inequities across the healthcare ecosystem. To learn more, visit https://www.surgohealth.com/.
About Peer Health Exchange
Peer Health Exchange’s (PHE) mission is to build healthier communities with young people. Together, we create education opportunities for peers to share the tools and resources young people need to make healthy decisions. With our partners, we advance health equity and improve health outcomes for young people in under-resourced communities.