Project Youth Euregional Scan 2023 (YES 2023)

Improving public health in Euregions requires a comprehensive understanding of the regional and euregional health landscape. With this goal in mind, several public health institutions have been conducting euregional youth scans since 2001, providing valuable, comparable data on young people aged 13-16 within the Euregion Meuse-Rhine (EMR). These scans, conducted in 2001, 2006/2007, 2013 and 2019 , have been led by the GGD Zuid Limburg.

Building on the success of these euregional youth surveys in the EMR, the initiative is now being expanded to the ERMN under the continued leadership of the GGD Zuid Limburg and with the financial support of Interreg VI A Deutschland-Nederland. By pooling and analyzing this data, public health professionals in the ERMN and EMR can work together to develop targeted policies and improve overall health outcomes for the region.

Background of the project

The pandemic had an impact on the physical and mental health of young people. Situations such as homeschooling, closed clubs and youth centers, and hardly any opportunities to meet and exchange ideas with friends and caregivers outside the family environment, have in some cases exacerbated the problem situations of young people. Physical and mental illnesses are the result. However, there is a lack of (eu-)regional data on the health situation and health behavior of young people.

Goal

The Youth Euregional Scan 2023 is an initiative aimed at gathering data on the health and risk behaviors of adolescents in the (eu-)region. The goal is to identify areas of need and develop targeted regional and supraregional prevention programs for adolescents.

By conducting this survey, we hope to gain valuable insights into the current health status of young people in the (eu-)region. The results will be used to prepare a comprehensive youth health report by the respective health department, which will serve as a valuable resource for policymakers, healthcare providers, and other stakeholders.

In addition, the data will be included in the Euregional Health Atlas (EHA, www.euregionalhealthatlas.eu), which will provide an overview of the health status of adolescents across the (eu-)region. This will help identify any regional patterns or trends in health behavior and inform future prevention efforts.

Questions

Basic information such as age, gender, height, weight and postal code is obtained. To determine the health situation, questions are asked about, among other things:

• basic living conditions
• family situation
• self-assessed physical health
• mental health, stress, bullying
• nutrition and exercise
• risk behavior and substance abuse
• media consumption and social media
• sexuality
• school
• leisure, friendship

Data Security

The survey and data collection are conducted completely anonymously through a secure online platform. Participating students can access the platform using a randomly generated and unique numerical code, ensuring complete anonymity throughout the process. We do not collect any personal data such as names, dates of birth, or addresses at any time.

It’s important to note that participation in the survey is entirely voluntary and can be declined or cancelled at any time without the need for providing reasons.