Abstract
Introduction Many studies outline adolescents are particularly at risk of developing sleep issues, experiencing delayed sleep onset. The aim of our study was to identify effective ways to support young people to improve sleep patterns using behavioural intervention during Covid-19 by promoting youth participation and sharing information at scale.
Method The study entailed recruiting young people with lived experience of sleep issues to create three distinct advisory boards. Through consultation it was established that Covid-19 was having a significant impact on sleep patterns in this cohort and there was an urgent need to create accessible, evidence-based sleep intervention. We established a website dedicated to sharing sleep education. A downloadable e-Book, live web chat, videos, a newsletter and resources for schools and parents were all created with the input of the boards.
Results The website launched on 1st October 2020 with the aim to reach 400 young people by the end of the project on 6th June 2021. The project had the following reach:
Website visitors - 19,766
eBook downloads - 33,468
Newsletter signups – 1,601
Video views sharing sleep tips – 14,491
Young people receiving direct support through live chat – 34
Schools receiving resource pack – 3,500
Feedback from 50 individuals was evaluated to inform future work around the eBook and it was established that there is a strong preference for printed material, these findings were also supported by our youth advisory board.
Discussion Young people consistently told us that they want to be able to access evidence-based sleep information to support their own sleep patterns, our work lays important foundations on which to build nationally to support adolescent sleep and wellbeing at scale.
