FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Release- August 11th, 2026 9 AM PST

New report outlines how to strengthen
sexual health services for youth in British Columbia

The “BC Youth Sexual Health Evaluation Report” shares findings from expert consultations
with youth and service providers across the province with the aim of understanding current
gaps in care and co-designing strengthened, youth-centred sexual health services to better
meet the needs of youth moving forward.

Today, August 11th 2026, the UBC Sexual Health Evaluation Team and Options for Sexual Health
(Options) have published a new report documenting persistent barriers to youth sexual health
access across BC and the development of a co-designed, youth-centred sexual health service
model to better meet the needs of diverse youth. Drawing on the experiences of youth (ages
15-29 years) and service providers across BC, in partnership with local youth and community
advisors and the Options team, the report summarizes the findings from the evaluation phase
of an ongoing co-design, implementation project on youth-centred sexual health care in BC.

Equitable access to sexual and reproductive health services remains a pressing concern for
youth (ages 15-29 years) in BC and across Canada. Rates of sexually transmitted infections
(STIs), sexual violence, and unplanned pregnancies remain disproportionately high, particularly
in rural, remote, and smaller urban centres settings across the province. While there have been
some major advancements in sexual health service delivery in BC, including free contraception
for youth, online testing for STIs, and expanded scope of practice for prescribing contraception
and Mifegymiso (prescription abortion), inequities in access to sexual health care and education
for youth remain a major concern, particularly outside urban centres and for minoritized youth.

The evaluation phase (2025-2026) included site visits across 8 communities and 4 health
regions in BC; alongside expert consultations and interviews with 91 youth and 47 sexual health
care providers across the province. Among youth, the highest proportion were aged 15-19
years (44%) and 24% of youth were 20-24 years. Close to half (46%) identified as a racial
minority, with 19% as First Nations and/or Métis. A quarter of youth (24%) identified a sexual
minority (lesbian, gay, queer, bisexual, pansexual, asexual or questioning). In terms of gender
identity, the majority (69%) identified as girls or young women, 25% as boys or young men, and
6% as gender diverse, non-binary, or gender queer. Among the 47 service providers, close to
half were nurses (49%), along with family physicians, counsellors, sexual assault educators,
settlement service providers, and midwives.

“The evaluation revealed ongoing gaps in sexual health care access across BC, and these are
particularly amplified for youth in rural communities and with intersecting social inequities” says Rachel Bergen, Evaluation Lead

The report documents limited awareness and promotion of available and accessible services for
youth, from contraception and abortion care to STI and pregnancy supports; gaps in sexual
health education and services in schools; restricted clinic hours where available; lack of
flexibility and inaccessible locations; and widespread concerns of confidentiality, particularly in
smaller communities. Youth also describe significant transportation barriers, with some youth
travelling a full day just to access care.

“You have to walk through an emergency department to get to something that just should be
easy access for everyone. It felt really isolating. If I hadn’t gone with my friend, I wouldn’t have
gone, because I feel like…you had to ask everyone, ‘Where’s the sexual health [clinic]?’” – Youth Expert

“So, [the local primary health center] has a lot of barriers for youth to access because of
confidentiality reasons. For youth, it’s a small community, everyone knows each other. And
unfortunately, there’s a lot of talk about who comes in there… So, I’ve just heard a lot of youth
say they won’t go there.” – Rural Service Provider Expert

The evaluation also found a concerning lack of safe, inclusive and culturally competent care,
with disproportionate gaps for gender, sexual minority youth, Indigenous and racial minority
youth and newcomer youth within mainstream public health units and primary care clinics.

Through a network of more than 30 sexual health clinics, as well as a telehealth service, and
affiliate clinics in partnership with First Nations Bands and Northern Health Authorities, Options
delivers a broad range of care- from contraception management, STI testing and treatment,
cervical cancer screening, pregnancy testing and counselling, and referrals to external sexual
and reproductive health services. Through this clinical program and its Sex Sense, Education
and Community Engagement programs, Options champions and celebrates the sexual health of
all people in BC by supporting, providing, and promoting inclusive and accessible health care
and education “This evaluation phase was undertaken alongside our strategic planning
activities, with the aim of connecting with youth and providers across BC to bring their voices
directly into determining the best way forward for sexual health service delivery in BC.” says
Tiffany Melius, Executive Director of Options for Sexual Health.

A key outcome of the evaluation phase is the creation of a co-designed, youth-centred sexual
health care model that will be piloted this coming fall by Options for Sexual Health and local
partners in two rural and remote communities. With funding from the Canadian Institutes of
Health Research (CIHR), during the upcoming phases of the project the team will evaluate the
youth clinics for acceptability, feasibility, and refinement of the model with a focus on potential
for scale-up and sustainability.

The co-designed, youth-centred sexual health service model includes low-barrier, youth only
spaces that are 2S/LGBTQIA+ inclusive, culturally competent and adopt core principles of youth
friendly spaces; access to youth social programming; specialized sexual health care with
adjacency /or direct pathways to other primary care clinical supports; linkages to
comprehensive sexual health education within schools; flexible options for evening or
weekends access; and transportation support.

“It is exciting to see Options and local partners pilot a youth-centred sexual health care model
that is directly co-designed by youth and providers to better meet the needs of youth across BC.
The model aims to address growing sexual health inequities, particularly for minoritized youth
and those living in rural and remote communities.” says Dr. Kate Shannon, UBC Professor and
co-principal investigator of the project.

——
About BC Youth Sexual Health Evaluation and Co-Design Project
Funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the UBC Sexual Health Evaluation
Team and Options for Sexual Health partnered in 2025 to facilitate a project aimed at
strengthening youth sexual health services in BC – with a particular focus on underrepresented
youth and youth in rural, and remote communities. The project adopts a user-engaged, codesign implementation science approach to evaluate youth and provider-identified gaps and
design of youth-centred, sexual health services that better meets the needs of youth in BC.
You can read more about the project and access the report here: https://www.bcsexualhealthevaluation.ca

About Options for Sexual Health
As the largest sexual health non-profit in Canada, Options provides sexual and reproductive
health education, information, and clinical services across BC with the mission of supporting,
providing, and promoting inclusive and accessible health care and education. Through a
network of more than 30 sexual health clinics, as well as a telehealth service, Options delivers a
broad range of care from contraception management, sexually transmitted infection (STI)
testing and treatment, cervical cancer screening, pregnancy testing and counselling, and
referrals to external sexual and reproductive health services. In addition to clinical care,
Options delivers school- and community-based sexual health education sessions, administers a
certification program for sexual health educators, the Sexual Health Educator Certificate (SHEC),
and runs the Sex Sense program. Sex Sense is a confidential service operated by registered
nurses, counsellors, and sex educators, which offers information, referrals, and system
navigation support via phone and email, with chat and text to be added in the Fall of 2026.
You can read more about Options here: https://www.optionsforsexualhealth.org

Media contacts:
Ashleigh Turner
Options for Sexual Health
Communications Director
778-995-7499
aturner@optbc.org

Brett Goldhawk
UBC Faculty of Medicine
778-952-7858
Brett.goldhawk@ubc.ca

The full report can be found here https://www.bc-sexualhealthevaluation.ca/reports. 

We are grateful to have worked with the UBC School of Population and Public Health and UBC Faculty of Medicine. Their social media accounts can be found here:

UBC School of Population and Public Health
Faculty of Medicine (LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook ).

PDF Version of Media Release: Media Release Aug 11 9am PST – Options + UBC Final