Lost in the Gap: Youth Mental Health Access in Rural Canada
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Authors
Lambert, Maigan
Issue Date
2026-01-07
Type
Capstone
Language
en
Keywords
mental health , rural Canada , youth , barriers , accessibility , rural , development , travel burden , mental health accessibility , mental health service barriers
Alternative Title
Abstract
Rural Canadian youth face distinct barriers to accessing mental health services, shaped by geographic isolation, socioeconomic constraints, systemic inequities, and cultural stigma, all of which interact and can be explored through an ecological lens to illustrate how individual, community, and societal factors shape mental health accessibility. This capstone is guided by the research question: How can telehealth-based mental health interventions support improved access to mental health services for rural Canadian youth? Rural communities are host to several service modalities, such as walk in clinics, community-based programs, emergent and primary care clinics, and telehealth services, all with their own strengths and limitations. Long travel distances, limited local services, practitioner shortages, economic constraints, and confidentiality concerns in small communities are common geographical and systemic obstacles to care. Cultural norms emphasize self-reliance, along with stigma surrounding mental illness, further discourage help-seeking among rural youth. While digital and community integrated approaches have been integrated into current mental health care models, their effectiveness is constrained by infrastructure gaps and systemic inequalities. Recommendations emphasize the need for coordinated, multilevel interventions that expand rural workforce capacity, strengthen infrastructure, enhance cultural safety, and promote community engagement. The results highlight the importance of holistic, ethically grounded strategies to reduce disparities and improve mental health accessibility for rural youth across Canada.
Description
Citation
Publisher
License
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
openAccess
openAccess