Monday, April 26, 2004

Top U.S. Physicians, Lawyers Tackle National Drug Policy
A "newsmaker interview" at Medscape Medical News with David C. Lewis, MD, a professor at Brown University and a member of the board of directors of a nonpartisan organization, Physicians and Lawyers for National Drug Policy formed "to advocate for a public health approach to federal and state substance abuse policies." The introduction to the interview notes, " Since its inception in 1997, the group has believed that drug and alcohol policies must be based on evidence rather than on politics, that prevention and treatment are more cost-effective than incarceration, and that substance abuse should be afforded equal footing with other chronic, relapsing conditions in terms of access to care and insurance coverage. The revised and expanded group, now incorporating members from the legal profession, met on April 20 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., to discuss these and other issues, including the need for widespread alcohol screening in trauma centers and emergency rooms." [Viewing Medscape resources requires registration, which is free].  
  

High-Dose Cyclic Antidepressants Linked With Risk of Sudden Cardiac Death
Reuters Health story at Medscape - "The risk of sudden cardiac death is not increased with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants, or tricyclic and other related cyclic antidepressants (TCAs) in doses less than 100 mg, according to results of a study published in the March issue of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics. However, there appears to be an association between higher doses of TCAs and increased relative risk." "med"  
  

Developments in the Treatment of Cannabis Use Disorder
Article from Current Opinion in Psychiatry at Medscape that describes recent developments in the treatment of cannabis abuse and dependence in the general and special populations - "There is a paucity of research into pharmacological and psychological interventions for cannabis use disorder. There are no accepted pharmacotherapies available. Whereas relatively brief cognitive-behavioural therapy has the strongest evidence of success for adults with cannabis dependence, among adolescents involved in the juvenile justice system and those with severe, persistent mental illness, longer and more intensive therapies provided by interdisciplinary teams may be required..." [Viewing Medscape resources requires registration, which is free].  
  

Drug Makers Hope to Kill the Kick in Pain Relief
April 20 New York Times story - "Worried that millions of Americans are using prescription opiate painkillers to get high rather than to ease severe chronic pain, drug makers are working on ways to prevent abuse. Cooperating closely with government officials and pain specialists, the companies are educating doctors, rewriting warning labels and tracking pills as they move from pharmacy to patient..." [Viewing New York Times resources requires registration, which is free].  
  

Lost and Found: Voices of the Forgotten Generation
A report, in Adobe Acrobat format, from the British not-for-profit organization Rethink - " Mental health has for decades been treated as the 'Cinderella service,' though for the past six years, it has sat alongside cardiac care and cancer as one of the government’s three health priorities. Its priority status has led to a period of dramatic reform and, in certain areas, dramatic investment. However, this period of reform has bypassed many people. The reform process has focused predominately on crisis support but not on those who have been within the mental health system for some years. We are launching this campaign to highlight the needs of a group of people we call the ‘forgotten generation’. These are people with severe mental illness living in the community who have been largely forgotten by mainstream mental health services..." See also the Rethink web site.  
  

Comparing two models of supportive housing for people who are homeless
Item in CMHA/Ontario's newsletter, Mental Health Notes - "Homeless people with chronic mental illness and addiction issues respond positively when they are provided with independent housing without first requiring psychiatric treatment or sobriety, according to two recent studies. Contrary to the 'continuum of care' traditional service delivery model that requires clients to complete treatment prior to receiving housing, the 'housing first' model provides a direct transition from the streets or psychiatric hospital to an apartment. There are two requirements to the 'housing first' program: the client must pay 30 percent of his or her income toward the rent through a money management program, and must meet with a staff member at least twice a month..."  
  

Mental Health Tuneup (Canada)
Mental Health Tuneup is "a partnership between the Ontario Psychological Association (OPA) and the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), Ontario. The first Mental Health Tune Up event was launched in May 2002. The goal of Mental Health Tune Up is to stimulate interest and awareness in community mental health as the toll of untreated mental illness continues to rise. In the longer term, promoting community mental health will significantly reduce the prevalence and costs of mental health disability as well as the stigma often attached to mental illness."  
  

Mental hospital to grow (North Carolina)
Story in The Daily News (Jacksonville) - "Jacksonville's Brynn Marr Hospital is adding a $1 million, 9,000-square-foot addition to get a jump start on the state's Mental Health Reform Plan, which calls for the privatization of all psychiatric treatment by 2007. ... In 2003, patients from more than 35 North Carolina counties were sent to Brynn Marr Hospital."  
  

U.S. Finds Fault With Child Welfare Programs in All 50 States
New York Times feature story - "Federal investigators have found widespread problems in child welfare programs intended to protect children from abuse and neglect, and no state has received passing grades from the Bush administration in reviews conducted over the last three years. As a result, states face tens of millions of dollars in penalties. State officials said the penalties could make it more difficult for them to pay for the needed improvements. ... Federal officials repeatedly cited states for certain deficiencies: significant numbers of children suffering abuse or neglect more than once in a six-month period; caseworkers not visiting children often enough to assess their needs; and not providing promised medical and mental health services." [Viewing New York Times resources requires registration, which is free].  
  

Lincoln mental health center will be largest in the state (Nebraska)
Omaha World-Herald story - "When it opens here next month, a new $25 million hospital-based mental health center will be the largest in Nebraska. And, hospital officials add, it'll be right next to one of the area's biggest emergency departments. Part of a five-year, $140 million expansion and renovation at BryanLGH Medical Center West, the new mental health center features 77 acute-care beds and specialized services for children, teens, adults and senior citizens with mental illnesses..."  
  

Mental health system strained (Michigan)
Story in the Jackson Citizen Patriot - "The state's mental health system has increasingly come under fire for not providing the supports necessary for the state's growing population of mentally ill people. ... Among the challenges faced by the mentally ill are a lack of affordable housing, access to health care and access to transportation..."  
  

Proposed change in funding frightens mental health providers (Illinois)
Story in The Telegraph - "The state of Illinois wants to change the way it distributes funds to mental health care agencies to take advantage of more federal Medicaid reimbursements, but officials with those provider agencies fear the changes could force them to cut staff and services to their clients. Under a plan first outlined in February under Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year, the Illinois Department of Human Services would stop issuing lump-sum grants to mental health care providers. Under the current system, those grants are divided into monthly allotments, and the agencies later reconcile their expenses with the state."  
  

Mentally Ill: Caught in revolving doors of justice (Utah)
Story in the Salt Lake Tribune, focusing on one person's experience with the state's mental health and criminal justice systems - a person whose experiences are "unremarkable, which makes her all the more notable to critics who say the nation's mental health system is crumbling. Advocates for the mentally ill point to federal and state budget cuts that have made it increasingly difficult for public agencies to deal with people ... who have a mental illness but aren't thought to be an extreme danger to themselves or others."