Hogg Foundation for Mental Health News and Grants
Hogg Foundation for Mental Health
April, 2012
TEXAS NEWS
Reports of Violence Spur Call for Change at Youth Jails
The Texas Tribune
April 30, 2012
Five years after instituting a sweeping overhaul in the wake of sexual and physical abuse scandals at Texas youth lockups, a senior lawmaker is again calling the situation at the facilities a crisis that jeopardizes the safety of youths. ...Advocates of juvenile justice reform said that while the recent reports were troubling, they did not indicate that the overhaul had not worked. They said the state should continue the reforms by keeping even more youths in smaller, local facilities that are like group homes, where they can be closer to their families and to better rehabilitation and mental health care.
http://www.texastribune.org/texas-state-agencies/texas-youth-commission/reports-violence-spur-call-change-youth-jails/
Unheeded warnings: Congressional earmarks were sought for Aliviane in spite of troubles
El Paso Times
April 30, 2012
...The inspector general's report was at least the second warning Reyes had regarding an enterprise in which Madrid was involved. In 2006, staffers with the Border Children's Mental Health Collaborative warned Reyes and his staff that LKG wasn't performing the services it was paid for. A federal indictment would later accuse Madrid, Garcia and LKG of the same thing. But after the warning in 2006, the congressman and his staff apparently did nothing other than await an already-scheduled visit by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the agency administering the grant.
http://www.elpasotimes.com/news/ci_20510875/unheeded-warnings
Group offers solutions to the homeless
The Monitor
April 27, 2012
In a special seminar this week, homeless and migrant clients of the Good Neighbor Settlement House heard something they probably knew little about before. ... He and others learned about the resources available to them on topics that ranged from workforce training to mental health, education and housing. The four-day "Hope for the Homeless" project was organized by graduate students in the University of Texas at Brownsville's Counseling and Guidance Program.
http://www.themonitor.com/news/homeless-60441-neighbor-something.html
Texas Medical Board disciplines four Tarrant County doctors
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
April 27, 2012
Doctors in Euless, Fort Worth, Southlake and Westlake were among 32 physicians disciplined by the Texas Medical Board in April. ... Dr. Tanuja Reddy of Southlake agreed to undergo a neuropsychological examination. The board said he could not practice medicine with reasonable skill or safety due to a mental or physical condition.
http://blogs.star-telegram.com/investigations/2012/04/texas-medical-board-disciplines-four-tarrant-county-doctors.html
NATIONAL NEWS
Nonprofit Hospitals Faulted For Stinginess With Charity Care
NPR
April 27, 2012
...While Ohio has a law that prevents foreclosures based on medical debt alone, it is legal for hospitals to garnish patient wages, attach bank accounts and get a lien on any future earnings, including from the sale of a house. ... Nonprofit hospitals, including Mount Carmel, pay no federal, state or local taxes, giving them a competitive edge over their for-profit counterparts. In return, nonprofits are expected to offer a community benefit, including free and discounted care for low-income patients. But despite the requirement, a study by the Congressional Budget Office found that on average, not-for-profits provide only slightly more uncompensated care than for-profit hospitals.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/04/27/151537743/nonprofit-hospitals-faulted-for-stinginess-with-charity-care
Mental health treatment improving in Oregon
San Antonio Express-News
April 29, 2012
BEND, Ore. (AP) - ... Mental health care has changed dramatically thanks largely to a 1999 U.S. Supreme Court decision, which coincided with local officials' desire to create more options for the mentally ill and with the state's push for deinstitutionalization. As a result, Central Oregon today provides a greater spectrum of care for people struggling to cope with schizophrenia and other mental illnesses.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/article/Mental-health-treatment-improving-in-Oregon-3519630.php
Suicide rate in Conn. at 20-year high
San Antonio Express-News
April 30, 2012
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) - The chief medical examiner's office says the state's suicide rate has climbed to a 20-year high with more than one per day.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/article/Suicide-rate-in-Conn-at-20-year-high-3520728.php
Brownback proposes $2 million for Larned Hospital
San Antonio Express-News
April 27, 2012
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) - The Kansas Legislature is being asked to appropriate about $2 million to Larned State Hospital, which is threatened with losing federal certification because of chronic problems with staffing. Losing the certification from the Joint Commission, a national organization that accredits hospitals, would cost the state $14.5 million in federal funds each year.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/article/Brownback-proposes-2-million-for-Larned-Hospital-3515260.php
Report: 47 homeless deaths in Portland last year
San Antonio Express-News
April 27, 2012
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - The lives of Portland's homeless do not go unnoticed. Disheveled men with sleeping bags stage protests at City Hall, camp on prime downtown real estate and gather every evening on one of the city's most prominent bridges. But when a homeless person dies, sometimes in a horrific manner, the event passes with little notice. ... Multnomah County Commissioner Deborah Kafoury said the high cost of housing is pushing more people to the streets and they don't get needed help for mental and physical problems, along with treatment for addictions.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/article/Report-47-homeless-deaths-in-Portland-last-year-3516114.php
HEALTHCARE REFORM
In Hopeful Sign, Health Spending Is Flattening Out
The New York Times
April 28, 2012
WASHINGTON - The growth of health spending has slowed substantially in the last few years, surprising experts and offering some fuel for optimism about the federal government's long-term fiscal performance. Much of the slowdown is because of the recession, and thus not unexpected, health experts say. But some of it seems to be attributable to changing behavior by consumers and providers of health care - meaning that the lower rates of growth might persist even as the economy picks up.http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/29/health/policy/in-hopeful-sign-health-spending-is-flattening-out.html?_r=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20120429
OPINIONS
Psychiatry's bible, the DSM, is doing more harm than good
The Washington Post
April 27, 2012
...Since the 1980s, when I first made public my concerns about psychiatric diagnosis, I have heard from hundreds of people who have been arbitrarily slapped with a psychiatric label and are struggling because of it. About half of all Americans get a psychiatric diagnosis in their lifetimes. Receiving any of the 374 psychiatric labels - from nicotine dependence disorder to schizophrenia - can cost anyone their health insurance, job, custody of their children, or right to make their own medical and legal decisions. And if patients take psychiatric drugs, they risk developing physical disorders such as diabetes, heart problems, weight gain and other serious conditions. In light of the subjectivity of these diagnoses and the harm they can cause, we should be extremely skeptical of them.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/psychiatrys-bible-the-dsm-is-doing-more-harm-than-good/2012/04/27/gIQAqy0WlT_story.html
Not All Outrageous Crimes Are Linked To Mental Illness
Medical News Today
April 27, 2012
...Professor Simon Wessely, a UK psychiatrist at the Institute of Psychiatry at London's King's, examines Breivik's case in this week's edition of The Lancet, concluding widespread misconception still remains that outrageous crimes are associated with mental illness. ...According to Professor Wessely, there are two popular misconceptions in the Breivik case: ...The purpose of psychiatry is help people avoid punishment ...Outrageous crimes must mean mental illness
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/244711.php
Unruly Kids May Have a Mental Disorder
ScienceDaily
April 29, 2012
When children behave badly, it's easy to blame their parents. Sometimes, however, such behavior may be due to a mental disorder. Mental illnesses are the No. 1 cause of medical disability in youths ages 15 and older in the United States and Canada, according to the World Health Organization.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120429085413.htm
A public defender needs no cronies
Houston Chronicle
April 30, 3012
... Just last week, in a letter to Harris County officials, the Texas Indigent Defense Commission warned that a number of local private attorneys receiving juvenile court appointments "had caseloads far in excess of nationally recommended guidelines. Without proper caseload controls, the rendering of adequate representation may be compromised." ...How will we measure the PDO's effectiveness? ... The Public Defender's Office has assigned experts to misdemeanor mental health cases, leading to quicker resolutions of those cases. That saves Harris County huge sums of money in jail costs.
http://www.chron.com/default/article/Hart-A-public-defender-needs-no-cronies-3518838.php
Medicare's $8 billion advantage
The Washington Post
April 27, 2012
ONE OF THE significant reforms in the health-care law was to put private Medicare plans on a more equal footing with the traditional government program. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act altered the payment structure in which the private plans, known as Medicare Advantage, were essentially overpaid in comparison to the traditional fee-for-service plan, receiving about $114 for every $100 spent on traditional Medicare. With about a quarter of Medicare beneficiaries now enrolled in private plans, the change was projected to save a significant amount of money: $145 billion over nine years.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/medicares-8-billion-advantage/2012/04/27/gIQAlcYGmT_story.html
RESEARCH
Can Your Mental Health Affect Your Longevity?
U.S. News & World Report
April 27, 2012
There's truth to the adage that you're only as old as you feel. "Physical well-being and subjective well-being are two sides of the same coin," says Howard Friedman, author of The Longevity Project, a research-based look at who lives the longest and why. "Mental health affects physical health, and physical health affects mental health."
http://health.usnews.com/health-news/articles/2012/04/27/can-your-mental-health-affect-your-longevity
Anxiety, Depression Often Go Hand-in-Hand With Arthritis
HealthDay
April 30, 2012
... Researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also found that even though anxiety is nearly twice as common as depression among people with arthritis, doctors tend to focus more on depression in these patients.
http://consumer.healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=664160
Children Usually Excluded From Clinical Drug Trials: Study
HealthDay
April 30, 2012
... In a new study, researchers looked at all clinical trials registered worldwide from 2006 to 2011 for drugs to treat these common conditions: asthma, migraine headaches, schizophrenia, depression, diarrheal illness, lower respiratory infection, malaria, bipolar disorder and HIV/AIDS. While children account for 60 percent of the patients with these conditions, only 12 percent of the clinical drug trials involved children, the investigators found.
http://consumer.healthday.com/Article.asp?AID=664060
Contraceptive use linked to current mood disorder risk in women
MedWire News
April 27, 2012
The use of progestin-only contraceptives is associated with an increased risk for current mood disorders in women, while the use of combined estrogen and progestin contraceptive agents is associated with a reduced risk, study results suggest.
http://www.medwire-news.md/47/99048/Psychiatry/Contraceptive_use_linked_to_current_mood_disorder_risk_in_women.html
Reduced early teenage premorbid functioning in schizophrenia
MedWire News
April 27, 2012
Children who go on to develop schizophrenia in adulthood have poorer premorbid nonacademic performance and show poorer behavioural ratings compared with their peers who remain mentally healthy, Israeli researchers report.
http://www.medwire-news.md/61/99049/Schizophrenia/Reduced_early_teenage_premorbid_functioning_in_schizophrenia.html
Being Left out Puts Youths With Special Needs at Risk for Depression
ScienceDaily
April 29, 2012
The challenges that come with battling a chronic medical condition or developmental disability are enough to get a young person down. But being left out, ignored or bullied by their peers is the main reason youths with special health care needs report symptoms of anxiety or depression, according to a study to be presented`123 April 29, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Boston.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120429085404.htm
Fight or Flight: Violent Teens May Be Following Parents' Lead
ScienceDaily
April 29, 2012
... Teens who fight may be modeling what they see adult relatives do or have parents with pro-fighting attitudes, according to a study to be presented April 29, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Boston.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120429085359.htm
FEATURES & RESOURCES
Loyal Companion Helps a Veteran Regain Her Life After War Trauma
The New York Times
April 28, 2012
...Medications and therapy have helped her cope with, though not overcome, the depression, sleeplessness and anxiety caused by post-traumatic stress disorder. But nothing has been more important to her recovery, she says, than Devon, the amiable golden retriever that has become her constant companion.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/29/us/loyal-companion-helps-a-veteran-with-post-traumatic-stress-disorder.html?_r=1&ref=health
Choose Health Coverage Like An Economist
NPR
April 27, 2012
...if you're puzzling over which insurance plan to pick, take a look at how some health economists size them up. Clever journalist Dinah Wisenberg Brin got some big names in the world of health economics to reveal details about their insurance status. And you might learn a thing or two from their thinking.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/04/27/151517655/choose-health-coverage-like-an-economist
Patients want to use social media tools to manage health care
American Medical News
April 30, 2012
Some patients have moved beyond wanting social media content they can "follow" or "like." They want social media to be something that helps them coordinate care and navigate the health care system, and they think physicians are the best people to deliver it. A survey of 1,060 U.S. adults by the PwC Health Research Institute found that a third of respondents are gravitating toward social media as a place for discussions of health care.
http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2012/04/30/bisa0430.htm
