Uncategorized
Construction of Suicide Net Begins on Golden Gate Bridge
Pyschiatric News By Linda M. Richmond Sept 13, 2018 Construction of a suicide-deterrent net is under way at the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. It is hoped to end the bridge’s standing as one of the world’s most popular suicide sites. Seventy-nine years after the first call to action to erect a barrier... read more
APA Joins Health Organizations in Lawsuit Against Expansion of Short-Term Health Plans
American Psychiatric Association Sept 14, 2018 Joining a coalition of seven mental health and health advocacy groups, APA filed suit today in federal court to invalidate a Trump administration rule on short-term, limited duration health plans. The coalition argued in its complaint that the final rule, issued last month by three federal agencies, violates the plain-English... read more
California is sitting on hundreds of millions of dollars for mental health programs. Let's put it to use.
Los Angeles Times By The Los Angeles Times Editorial Board September 10, 2018 Like much of the rest of the nation, California went only halfway toward keeping its promise to improve mental health care. It closed psychiatric hospitals, some of which were really just costly warehouses for the sick... read more
Los Angeles Times By Jenny Gold Aug. 27, 2018 Marijuana may be losing its image as a dangerous drug, but mounting research suggests women should steer clear of it if they are pregnant or breastfeeding, according to new recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics. The advice comes as more... read more
With an epidemic of mental illness on the streets, counties struggle to spend huge cash reserves
Los Angeles Times By Thomas Curwen Aug 19, 2018 When California voters passed a tax on high-income residents in 2004, backers said it would make good on the state’s “failed promise” to help counties pay for the treatment of the mentally ill. After nearly 15 years, Proposition 63... read more
The San Diego Union-Tribune By Paul Sisson August 17, 2018 With just days to go before it was to shutter its psychiatric ward, Tri-City Medical Center announced Friday afternoon that its board of directors will hear public testimony and take a fresh vote on the matter next week. The Oceanside... read more
Tri-City Medical Center closes crisis-Stabilization unit
The San Diego Union-Tribune By Paul Sisson August 8, 2018 Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside has closed its 12-person crisis-stabilization unit, a move that precedes plans to shut down the hospital’s 18-bed behavioral health unit later this month. In a short statement made Wednesday afternoon, Tri-City management confirmed that it closed... read more
Task Force on Gene Testing for Antidepressant Efficacy Concludes Tests Not Yet Ready for Widespread Use
Psychiatric News By Mark Moran July 19, 2018 One problem is lack of transparency regarding algorithms used by commercial entities to determine treatment recommendations on the basis of testing of genetic variations. Individualized medicine employing pharmacogenomics to guide psychiatric treatment is the future, experts agree. But the future is not here yet. That’s the... read more
The Great God of Depression
How mental illness stopped being “A terrible dark secret.” The New York Times By Pagan Kennedy Aug 3, 2018 Nearly 30 years ago, the author William Styron outed himself in these pages as mentally ill. “My days were pervaded by a gray drizzle of unrelenting horror,” he wrote... read more
When Medicines Affect a Child's Mind and Behavior
The New York Times By Perri Klass, M.D. July 30, 2018 Whenever I write about children getting medications for anxiety, for depression, or especially for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, a certain number of readers respond with anger and suspicion, accusing me of being part of a conspiracy to medicate... read more