Friday, December 19, 2003

The Uninsured and Their Access to Health CareFact sheet (in Adobe Acrobat format) from the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured - "While nearly two-thirds of nonelderly Americans receive health insurance coverage through their employers and almost all the elderly are covered through Medicare, 43.3 million Americans lacked health insurance in 2002. Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) play an important role by covering millions of nonelderly lowincome people, especially children. However, limits to these public programs and gaps in employer coverage leave millions of nonelderly Americans uninsured – creating substantial barriers to obtaining timely and appropriate health care..."  
  

Employment Programs Help Patients With Mental Illnesses Succeed Psychiatric Times article - "It’s often believed--even by mental health care professionals--that people with mental illnesses could be employed in low-level jobs. Studies and demonstration projects have shown, however, that these individuals can sustain employment in high-level positions with the proper training and support."  
  

Suicide Risk: Assessing the Unpredictable Psychiatric Times article - " The evaluation of suicide risk is a challenging clinical task. Suicide is a multi-determined act that results from a complex interaction between a number of factors. It is unfortunate but true that most clinicians have had or will have patients who attempt or commit suicide, making patient suicide an occupational hazard for clinicians. .." See also a number of other, related articles in the December issue - Managed Care's Role in Caring for Suicidal Patients, Identifying Neurobiological Correlates of Suicide Risk in Depression, Suicidal Behavior in the Elderly, Suicidal Self-Injurious Behavior in People With BPD, and The Relationship of Suicide Risk to Family History of Suicide and Psychiatric Disorders.  
  

Uninsured more likely to suffer substance abuse, less likely to get treatmentNewsRx story reprinted at PsycPORT - " When it comes to alcohol and drug addiction, people without health insurance are more likely both to suffer from substance abuse and to face barriers to treatment. A study of 25,500 people in the U.S. interviewed in 1998 as part of the National Household Study on Drug Abuse found that only 9% of people lacking health insurance and suffering from drug or alcohol dependence had received any treatment in the past year. Data also showed that non-Hispanic whites were three times more likely than blacks to receive substance abuse treatment or counseling. .."  
  

Baclofen Holds Promise For Cocaine TreatmentPress release reprinted at Science Daily - " The anti-spasticity medication baclofen holds promise for helping cocaine abusers overcome their addiction, a study by a UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute researcher finds. No medication currently holds U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for treatment of cocaine addiction. Published in the Dec. 15 edition of the peer-reviewed Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, the randomized, double-blind study found that baclofen used in conjunction with substance abuse counseling significantly reduced cocaine use in recovering addicts compared to placebo coupled with counseling. The study was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse as part of a project to screen medications with potential for treating cocaine dependence. "  
  

Mental health trusts failing black communities (UK)Story at Black Information Link (Blink) - "A new report by the Commission for Health Improvement (CHI) released today, found that mental health trusts were 'struggling to meet the needs of black and ethnic minority communities even when they are the majority population.' ... The CHI severely criticised the NHS for ‘limited’ involvement of black users, and said many mental health trusts were not even collecting basic ethnic monitoring data." See also the full report (36 pages, in Adobe Acrobat format) at the Commission for Health Improvement web site.  
  

What's Next for Managed Mental Health?Article by Leonard Holmes at About Mental Health - " Managed care has dramatically changed mental health care in the United States. Paperwork has skyrocketed as clinicians are required to fill out detailed forms to request additional sessions. "Behavioral healthcare" companies have been born as mental health care has been "carved-out" of insurance plans to be managed separately. What's in store for the future? As research continues to blur the distinction between mind and body the current system begs for change. Some believe that current trends - including the push toward parity legislation - will result in mental health benefits being reunited with (or "carved-in" to) benefits for physical health. ... Patients with co-occurring mental and physical disorders are poorly treated under the current system. .."  
  

Positive Impact targets mental health and HIV (Georgia)Southern Voice story on Positive Impact, "an organization founded in 1992 to help people with HIV cope with mental health issues." The organization "helps with prevention, treatment and connecting people who are HIV positive to community resources, she says. All of the organization’s mental health services are free to individuals whose income falls within 300 percent of the poverty line. Psychotherapy is available to both individuals and couples, and psychiatry is also available to help clients manage various medications."  
  

Foundation grant to fund mental health center (Florida)Sun Herald story - "A not-for-profit organization that helps the mentally ill will open an office here in January. Mental Health Community Center already operates facilities in Sarasota, Venice and Arcadia. The organization this week was awarded an $18,500 grant from the Gulfcoast Community Foundation of Venice to offer services at the North Port Social Services Center, located at Glenallen Elementary School."