Unfortunately, growing pain from CTS has caused delays in new posts to the national news blog while I work to learn and train my computer for voice commands. It’s hoped posts will resume soon. Questions, suggestions, volunteers? david@ncmentalhope.org
Archive for August, 2009
Reuniting families torn apart by mental illness is a thorny prospect for all involved. An L.A. County program aims to help female inmates handle their illness and get their children back.
For the last year, Sondra Sykes, 44, worked hard to prove she was a good mother who deserved to get her four youngest children back from foster care. She had several strikes against her: no job, a criminal record and, most worrisome for social workers handling her case, she was mentally ill.
The room is large, busy and crowded. It smells of paint, clay and sweat. Many of the artists are talking. Some to themselves, some to others, some to their creations.
It appears that sanity has come at last to Psycho Donuts. The place still has a crazy feel. The Bates Motel sign still welcomes visitors, and the doughnuts have names like “manic malt” and “coco kooks.” But the “bipolar” and “severe head trauma” doughnuts are off the menu. The décor no longer includes straitjackets and a padded cell.
Mental-health care may soon cost less for many working Americans. Starting in January, a new law will require that group health plans put mental-health care and treatment of substance-use disorders on par with physical illnesses.
Amid the tragic aftermath — for the third time since May — of a teen’s death on Palo Alto’s Caltrain tracks, city leaders will work this week to soothe a frayed community, promising an all-out bid to “prevent any more of these from happening.” The 13-year-old girl, who was to begin ninth grade at Gunn High School, was killed about 10:45 p.m. Friday when she apparently stepped into the path of a southbound train, officials say.
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After months of debate on how much funding is needed for West Virginia’s behavioral health care system, the state suddenly finds itself in a good position.
A settlement with drug manufacturer Eli Lilly & Co. announced last week sets aside $14.75 million for behavioral health care, money that few in the state were counting on.
PHILADELPHIA – The nation’s home foreclosure epidemic may be taking its toll on Americans’ health as well as their wallets. Nearly half of people studied while undergoing foreclosure reported depressive symptoms, and 37 percent met screening criteria for major depression, according to new University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine research published online this week in the American Journal of Public Health. Many also reported an inability to afford prescription drugs, and skipping meals. The authors say their findings should serve as a call for policy makers to tie health interventions into their response to the nation’s ongoing housing crisis.
The closure of mental health beds at Alberta Hospital Edmonton (AHE) is being hammered right, left and centre. The just-announced decision by the province to close 100 to 150 acute-care beds at the facility is being criticized by a federal Tory MP and by the provincial NDP and Liberals.
The recent tragedy in Morris Township, New Jersey, in which Jenny Erazo-Rodriguez allegedly killed one of her daughters and attempted to harm her other daughter and herself truly touches the heart of our community. At the same time, we cannot let this incident give rise to the negative stereotypes and myths that are too often associated with mental illness. According to a 2003 report from the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, 61% of Americans think that people with mental illness are likely to be dangerous to others.
Dunkin’ Donuts it’s not.
At Psycho Donuts, “peculiar donuts hobnob with quirky art, and a crazy, themed environment,” says the independent shop near San Jose, Calif. The staff dresses like doctors and nurses, dispensing such sugary, transfat-free prescriptions as “Glazed and Confused,” “Cereal Killer,” “Cocoa Kooks” and “Psycho.” And therein lies the controversy.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Two California inmates, both serving life sentences for notorious murders in 1970, died in their cells of apparent suicide over the past week. The deaths of John Linley Frazier, 62, and Bobby Augusta Davis, 67, come as the state is under federal court order to improve its care of sick and mentally ill inmates. An inmate advocate who was familiar with both prisoners said they had been receiving mental health care.
Finding causes and cures for mental illness may be closer than ever before. Much is being learned about the fact that mental illness is biologically based disorders of the brain. Unfortunately the stigma attached to mental illness is far from being eliminated.
When Philadelphia Eagles’ owner Jeffrey Lurie signed Michael Vick to a two-year contract last week, he did more than turn his team into a lighting rod for controversy; he gave America a quick lesson on passing judgment.
Without thinking, people pass judgment on everything and everybody on a daily basis. But what we don’t realize is that being judgmental can keep you from enjoying your best life. How? It’s simple. The need to rate others and impose your standards only helps to create barriers in your relationships or stop a relationship before it can even start.
Outraged by Virginia Tech’s claim that its mental health center “acted appropriately” in its treatment of Seung Hui Cho, an attorney for families of two of the victims responded Thursday in court papers demanding that the center’s former director admit that he was aware of Cho’s problems and failed to treat him.
The Army is set to introduce a new mental-health test of unprecedented size and scope as part of its increasing efforts to improve soldiers’ mental wellness amid the strain of repeated deployments. Come October, the service will require all its active duty, National Guard, and reserve soldiers to take a test that will help identify potential problem areas for soldiers. The 170-question test will look at physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and family issues and then recommend follow-on training as needed.
Audio Report:
ANN ARBOR, MI (MICHIGAN RADIO) – Advocates for Michigan’s mentally ill say 40 million dollars in proposed cuts will cost the state more money in the long run. Mark Reinstein is the president of Mental Health Association of Michigan. He says about 180 thousand Michiganders depend on the state for treatment and medication of mental disorders.
In an effort to address the mental health problems of some combat troops, the U.S. Army wants all of its 1.1 million soldiers to start taking emotional resiliency classes.
Some mental health services handled by Pierce County will soon be delivered through a private provider under a new system being set up by the state. Officials with Pierce County, the state Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) and OptumHealth pledged to work together on a smooth transition for the 15,000 low-income residents who rely on the state-funded assistance.
ROANOKE, Va. — As counselor Sherry Lynch Conrad said goodbye to Seung-Hui Cho after a 45-minute session, she urged him to return in January. He never made an appointment. That single in-person meeting in December 2005, which followed two telephone triage sessions, was the last contact Cho would ever have with therapists at Virginia Tech’s campus counseling center. Sixteen months later, he killed 32 people and himself in the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history.
By now you’ve heard the Obama Administration and other Democrats’ pitch to congress and the nation about the president’s health care reform plan and how it will help people afford quality health coverage. But for many people who suffer not just physically but mentally as well, the more important question is: How will Obama’s health care plan help those affected by mental illnesses like depression, bipolar disorder, or even attention deficit disorder?
LANSING — Benjamin Busfield is still alive because the shotgun he put to his head a year ago misfired. The 35-year-old unemployed Sturgis resident knew he needed help. He walked into the Community Mental Health Services office in Three Rivers and was immediately placed on suicide watch at a Kalamazoo hospital.
AstraZeneca sales over $5 billion a year worldwide from its drug Seroquel alone. Recently it has come to the attention of the public of the astronomical lawsuit defense costs as a result of failing to adequately warn about the serious side effects the drug carries. At the present, these are only allegations. The decision is now left up to the courts to decide is this is true. The costs have exceeded the extent of the liability insurance coverage for defense costs against the medication.
Kay Taylor Burnett found healing in writing while mourning two deaths in her family. First, she lost a bipolar son to suicide. Then she witnessed the death of her husband, the noted Texas lawyer Warren E. Burnett, as they were visiting Fort Davis. Kay Burnett moved to the desert mountain region of far West Texas to try to sort through her grief. She expresses the wide range of emotions that widows encounter and explores how the strength of friendship can fortify you in times of grief in a self-published murder mystery, “No Odes To Widows.”
Beer drinkers of Michigan! Pop open a frosty one and raise a toast to the status quo. Not that the political culture in Lansing would allow the beer tax to be doubled to 4 cents a can. Beer taxes haven’t been raised in nearly a half century for a reason.
“Part of the change in attitudes that I want to see here in Washington and all across the country is a belief that it is not acceptable for children and families to be without a roof over their heads in a country as wealthy as ours.” -President Barack Obama, March 24
Syracuse, NY — The family of a Clay man who died after a police Taser was used on him in 2008 filed a $10 million lawsuit last week against the county, the town of Clay, the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office and Rural/Metro ambulance service.
MADISON, Wis — True to his word, a hermit who encased his dead mother in a block of ice keeps himself in solitary confinement by threatening people, swearing at guards or simply refusing to leave his cell. Philip Schuth told a newspaper when he was sentenced to prison in 2005 that he feared other inmates and wanted to live in solitary confinement
Yes, the stock market has risen nicely this summer, regaining some of the losses from last fall and winter. But those gains are nothing compared to the performance of Targacept, which has spiked more than 500 percent in last six weeks — from $2.37 a share to $13 and above.
The Winston-Salem drug discovery company is slowly being discovered by a core group of investors on Wall Street. And it appears likely, though by no means assured, that more will be jumping on the bandwagon in the months ahead. And there’s a good reason why.
Yes, the stock market has risen nicely this summer, regaining some of the losses from last fall and winter. But those gains are nothing compared to the performance of Targacept, which has spiked more than 500 percent in last six weeks — from $2.37 a share to $13 and above.
The Winston-Salem drug discovery company is slowly being discovered by a core group of investors on Wall Street. And it appears likely, though by no means assured, that more will be jumping on the bandwagon in the months ahead. And there’s a good reason why.
TITUSVILLE, N.J., Aug. 21 /PRNewswire/ — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a complete response letter regarding the New Drug Application (NDA) for carisbamate, an anti-epileptic drug in development, announced Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
PASADENA — The man suspected in Friday’s fatal shooting of a Pasadena police officer once sued Santa Fe police, claiming two officers use excessive force against him.
Almost five years after Ventura County officials lined up the money to open a residential center for people facing mental health crises, they still can’t find a site. “We’re still intending to do it, and we have the funding to do it,” Behavioral Health Director Meloney Roy said last week. “We just need a place.”
The mother of the man charged in the death of a Lubbock grandfather said Thursday her son is sorry for the fatal hit-and-run. “We want to let the family know how sorry we are for their loss,” said Anjana Bibbs through sobs. “Tony is very, very sorry. … He did not realize he had hurt someone.”
The director of the counseling center at Virginia Tech, who said he “unintentionally” took home the mental health records of Seung Hui Cho two years before Cho went on a shooting rampage that killed 32 people and injured many more, was fired from his position after an independent review of the office
Posting of national news will resume August 24.
In terms of health care expenditures, the same five conditions were ranked as the five most costly conditions in 1996 and 2006. There was an increase in the expenditures for each of these conditions when comparing them over time. The five most costly conditions were: heart disease, trauma-related disorders, cancer, asthma, and mental disorders. During this period, the largest increase in expenditures was for mental disorders. The expenditures for this condition rose from $35.2 billion in 1996 (in 2006 dollars) to 57.5 billion in 2006. Medical expenditures on trauma-related disorders also increased substantially from 1996 (in 2006 dollars) to 2006, $46.2 billion to $68.1 billion
The city attorney stood on the roof of a homeless shelter high above the human misery of Skid Row in April and announced a $1.6 million settlement from a hospital accused of dumping about 150 mentally ill patients on the streets below. What seemed like a big payday for the shelter and other nonprofits that have fought homelessness, mental illness and drug abuse on Skid Row for years, however, turned out to be no such bonanza
NEW YORK – The American Psychological Association declared Wednesday that mental health professionals should not tell gay clients they can become straight through therapy or other treatments.
In 2006, a total of $98.8 billion was spent for care and treatment of children. The top five conditions in terms of health care expenditures are: mental disorders, asthma, traumarelated disorders, acute bronchitis, and infectious diseases. The highest expenditures were for care and treatment of mental disorders. Total expenditures to treat mental disorders were $8.9 billion. This was followed by expenditures for treating asthma, $8.0 billion and trauma-related disorders at $6.1 billion. In addition, $3.1 billion was spent on the treatment of acute bronchitis and $2.9 billion on the treatment
Generic drug maker Impax Laboratories Inc. got final approval from the Food and Drug Administration for a drug to treat epilepsy and bipolar disorders.