More than 50% of people will be diagnosed with a mental illness or disorder at some point in their lifetime, says the CDC.
There is a dire need to tackle the stigma associated with mental illness in youth, and aid development of innovative resources to help youth facing such challenges.
Half of the world's population is under 30, and 1.8 billion people are aged 10 to 24, making the youth of today the largest and most connected generation in human history.
Yet, approximately 1 in every 5 youth experiences a severe mental disorder at some point and youth with mental disorders face major challenges with stigma, isolation, and discrimination, as well as lack of access to health care and education facilities, according to the WHO.
Our objective with this GYHS was to equip youth with an understanding of the mental health challenges facing them, and provide a platform to civically engage and have their voices heard. MDJunior launched #MDJrHack, the first hackathon event of its kind in Asia. It was designed to unite and inspire high school and college students with youth from different walks of life to develop innovative solutions around pervasive mental health issues.
Who better to lead the charge for youth mental health than youth themselves with the support of the global community.
Global Youth Health Summit
The Conference portion was held Saturday, September 22. Youth attendees attended empowering and inspiring keynotes and panel discussions with some of the leading minds in the field. The conference brought together youth and leading professionals in global public health, nonprofits and organizations from all over the world, to create a forum that explores issues and solutions surrounding youth and mental health.
Hackathon for Mental Health
The Hackathon #MDJrHack was overnight on September 22-23. Inspired by the perspective from the conference, the Youth were challenged to build innovative solutions that affect societal change in youth and mental health. The idea was for youth to leverage their creative and computing skills, while demonstrating their problem solving capabilities and teamwork.
