Youth survey shows trends to help ‘move the needle’ in behaviors

Health indicators from the state’s biennial Youth Risk Behavior Survey shows more prevention work is being done to help youth, thanks to the ability to monitor certain trends over time, according to a presentation to the Lyon County Commission last week.

The commission, reconvening as the Board of Health during its Aug. 17 meeting with public health officer Dr. Robin Titus leading, heard results from the 2021 Nevada High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey State Report. University of Nevada, Reno’s Dr. Kristen Clements-Nolle, professor and graduate director of epidemiology, presented the report, which lists statewide data and progress on local interventions to improve the needs and lives of the state’s youth by county according to the schools and districts that participate.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funds the state-level high school YRBS survey, with the Nevada Division of Public and Behavioral Health contracting with UNR to provide samples to other regular public, charter and alternative high schools and middle schools.

Students in the ninth through 12th grades are asked to self-report on tobacco use, alcohol and other drug use, unhealthy behaviors, physical inactivity, sexual behaviors that contribute or lead to sexually transmitted diseases and unintended pregnancy and other behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries or violence.

Clements-Nolle said a total of 212 schools participated in the 2021 survey.

“It is important to note that in 2021, schools were not in session in person in the spring, and we did have to sample in the fall semester, so we had a great window when COVID cases were low,” Clements-Nolle said. “Our samples are as good, if not better, than the 2019 data.”

Clements-Nolle said in examining the mental health data results provided by Lyon County high school students for the 2021 survey, 49% indicated they experienced depressive symptoms for longer than a week compared to the state average of 46.1%. In suicide behaviors for the previous 12 months, 24.9% of Lyon students also were above the state’s 22.4% average for suicide ideation, 22% versus the state in suicide planning and they were equal to the state at 12.3% in making suicide attempts.

In pursuing or receiving actual help when feeling sad, empty, hopeless, angry or anxious, Clements-Nolle said 65% of Lyon’s high school youth marked they never or rarely received help as compared to the 62.2% in the state, 16.3% of Lyon’s students said they sometimes got help when 18.2% of students in the state said they did and 18.7% of Lyon

Clements-Nolle said the purpose of the study is surveillance on the trends happening among youth.

“The idea is to see if we’re moving the needle over time, and we have in many indicators, and I do believe that’s due to the good work on the ground, good prevention work,” she said. “We are able to see positive trends and worrisome trends.”

She said the idea was to keep an eye on what youth are engaging in over time.

“If we don’t ask, we don’t know, but the ‘what do we do about it?’ is the question,” she said.

The hope is individuals or organizations might be motivated to use the data for grant funding opportunities. The CDC provides $100,000 for the survey itself, which ultimately is not a high amount for a survey of its size, Clements-Nolle said.

She also reported to the commission that Nevada is one of the few states to administer a middle school survey, which provides useful data to reveal what happens between the younger and older students as they transition between school levels.

Commissioners said they would have liked to have seen a sample survey to understand how questions are worded for students and also to understand what solutions or help afterward are provided for the youth.

Commissioner Scott Keller, representing District 2, said it’s important to monitor the trends and understand the risk behaviors, but he was interested in knowing whether state or local resources being offered make an impact to producing healthy, resilient adults.

“I’d really like to know what’s being done for the younger generation,” Keller said. “When you fall down, everybody doesn’t fall down on a padded surface. Everybody needs to go through ups and downs, and the sooner you can emotionally take care of that, then you’re not protected all through life.”

For information about the YRBS, visit unr.edu/public-health/research-activities/nevada-youth-risk-behavior-survey.