General Mental Health Articles
- People overcoming physical workplace injuries may have accompanying behavioral health challenges that could keep them off the job almost three times as long, according to an analysis from business insurer Sentry. Early detection of mental health concerns among injured workers can improve employee well-being and save companies money. Read more here.
- Burnout is a growing crisis in health care. More than 50% of health care professionals report symptoms of it. Addressing the trauma they face at work can help. Halting burnout straddles the tension between addressing the individual factors versus the organizational factors behind it. It was once believed that burnout was related to health workers’ inability to cope with the natural stresses of their job. However, research has clarified what clinicians have long known: They are inherently resilient. Instead, systemic factors are the primary drivers of burnout. Read more here.
The Opioid Crisis and Addiction Issues
- Alarming data on fentanyl, including the synthetic opioid's staggering presence in counterfeit pills and contribution to overdoses among young people, continue to emerge, as do questions about the role of physicians in addressing the crisis. Notably, pediatricians and other physicians who regularly provide care to children and teens are in a unique position when it comes to having conversations about the dangers of fentanyl and other drugs. Read more here.
- Fentanyl-related overdose deaths hit a new high in 2023, as law enforcement seized record amounts of the synthetic opioid, official data shows. At least 1,089 people died from fentanyl poisoning last year, up 18.4% from 920 the year before, according to preliminary data released by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. A surge that started five years ago has continued, with the number of fentanyl-related deaths increasing more than 900% from the 102 recorded in 2018, data from the health department’s Center for Health and Environmental Data shows. Read more here.
- Fentanyl test strips are sold online and easily obtained free from many public health departments. They’re touted as a harm reduction tool to help drug users determine whether fentanyl is present in a pill or powder. However, Sheriff’s Deputy Patrick Craven, the lead detective of the newly formed opioid response team in rural Placer County, California, warns that the test strips are now being used by drug dealers who post photos on social media showing “negative” test results to advertise that their drugs are “clean.” Read more here.
- Fentanyl’s powerful pull comes from both the potent, rapid euphoria people feel while on the drug and the devastating symptoms of withdrawal. Researchers have now zeroed in on brain circuits responsible for these two forces of fentanyl addiction. The study in mice, reported May 22 in Nature, suggests two distinct brain pathways are in play. Read more here.
- For the first time, the number of Americans who use marijuana just about every day has surpassed the number who drink that often, a shift some 40 years in the making as recreational pot use became more mainstream and legal in nearly half of U.S. states. In 2022, an estimated 17.7 million people reported using marijuana daily or near-daily compared to 14.7 million daily or near-daily drinkers, according to an analysis of national survey data. Read more here.
- America is facing dual crises: a drug crisis and a mental health crisis. Both contribute to, and worsen, the other. During Mental Health Awareness Month, it is important that those on the front lines of these crises come together with lawmakers to acknowledge the two-way relationship between drug use and mental illness and chart a course forward that increases access to treatment that addresses their root causes. Read more here.
Gender-Affirming Care and LGBTQ Issues
- It's no longer breaking news that the LGBTQ community suffers from higher rates of suicide than non-LGBTQ folks. What we're talking about is a marginalized community that, despite marked progress in some areas, continues to face ruthless stigmatization across the U.S.—and the world. When you compound that reality with a youth demographic, a population gravely impacted by suicide, this public health crisis magnifies. Read more here.
State Policy
- Treatment for mental health and substance use disorders can add up quickly. A new bill signed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer aims to make sure insurance covers mental health treatments like physical health services. According to 2021 data from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, more than half of people with a mental health condition did not receive any treatment in the year before. Read more here.
- In a bipartisan vote, the California State Senate approved a bill from a Bay Area lawmaker aimed at targeting social media addiction among children and teens. On Monday night, senators approved Senate Bill 976 by State Sen. Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) on a 35-2 vote. The bill now goes onto the Assembly for consideration. Read more here.
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