BC's Representative for Children and Youth is expressing concern about changes being made to the Mental Health Act by the Province.
The Minister of Mental Health and Addictions confirmed the act will be amended to allow severely-drug addicted youth suffering overdoses to be "involuntarily hospitalized" for up to seven days.
But Jennifer Charlesworth says she has a number of concerns -- including how it will impact Indigenous youth:
" So we do see that there is a disproportionate number of Indigenous young people that have significant substance use concerns, and that's often related to the trauma and the harm that they've experienced and the history of colonization that continues to impact them. So they would be disproportionately represented in this population."
Charlesworth says it's important that First Nations and Metis leaders be engaged to ensure services provided in hospitals are culturally safe, and culturally appropriate.