2016

New Studies of the ‘Natural History’ of Schizophrenia Raise Hope for New Treatments

Posted on March 11, 2016

Medical News Today

According to a special issue of the Harvard Review of Psychiatry, emerging evidence on the development and long-term course of schizophrenia provide reasons for optimism for developing new treatments and preventive approaches.

National Alliance on Mental Illness creates new resource for students

Posted on March 8, 2016

U Conn Daily Campus

NAMI has created a new series of infographics for students with concerns for their own mental health as well as those who would like to help a friend

Bernie Sanders’ Mental Health Joke About the GOP is No Laughing Matter

Posted on March 8, 2016

U.S. News & Wordled Report

No candidate would make a joke during a political debate about people fighting cancer or living with diabetes. The same standard of seriousness, decency and respect should apply to mental health. All candidates – national, state and local – should be talking about mental health during the 2016 election campaigns. That includes speaking out against stigma

Mental Health Patients to Bernie Sanders: Don’t Compare us to the GOP Candidates

Posted on March 7, 2016

Washington Post

During the debate, Sanders intended to make fun of the attacks between Trump, Cruz and Rubio, he may have belittled mental health patients instead.Twitter users also criticized the linking of mental illness to alleged use of bigoted language.

Doctors Often Fail to Treat Depression Like a Chronic Illness

Posted on March 7, 2016

National Public Radio

Eight million doctor appointments are made each year because of depression. More than half are with primary care physicians, but those doctors often fall short in treating depression because of insurance issues, time constraints and other factors.

Are mass shootings contagious? Some scientists who study how viruses spread say yes.

Posted on March 7, 2016

Washington Post

 Mass shootings may be another form of suicide contagion. Perpetrators may be susceptible for a number of reasons, including social isolation, depression or paranoia.

More than a third of people shot by L.A. police last year were mentally ill, LAPD report finds

Posted on March 2, 2016

The 300-page report also shows that 25% of  less-serious uses of force involved a person whom a police officer believed had a mental illness.

Mental Illness: Families Cut Out of Care

Posted on March 2, 2016

USA Today

Federal law, HIPAA, forbids health providers from disclosing a patient’s medical information without consent, but people with ental illness often need help in making decisions and taking care of themselves, because their illness impairs judgement. Patients may not even realize they’re sick. Excluding families can lead to tragic results.

Survey: Half of Community College Students Report Mental Health Problems

Posted on March 2, 2016

Inside Higher Ed

Almost 50 percent of community college students have reported having current or recent mental health problems. 4,000 students at 10 community colleges in seven states were surveyed.

How America’s criminal justice system became the country’s mental health system

Posted on March 1, 2016

Vox

Two scenarios show what happens when police—and the justice system more broadly—deal with people with mental illnesses: In one, the encounter ends in a violent arrest that increases paranoia toward police. In the other, a situation is resolved peacefully in a way that prevents potential violence in the future.