Focus (American Psychiatric Publishing)最新文献

Stigma has been a pervasive and stubborn part of the mental illness landscape, but it need not be. This article explores the nature of mental health stigma, where it comes from, how it is manifested, how it harms people, and what can be done about it. The article articulates the need to clearly understand three major levels of mental health stigma-structural (e.g., laws and policies in society, institutions, and organizations), social (e.g., biases and attitudes toward others), and self (e.g., beliefs and feelings that those with mental health conditions have about themselves). Psychiatrists, psychologists, medical doctors, and counselors have, unfortunately, too often reinforced these mental health stigmas through policies, practices, and discourse. This article provides tips and strategies for collective and individual stigma reduction, with a particular focus on what mental health practitioners can do attitudinally, linguistically, and behaviorally.

Background: There is a rich literature on the nature of mental health-related stigma and the processes by which it severely affects the life chances of people with mental health problems. However, applying this knowledge to deliver and evaluate interventions to reduce discrimination and stigma in a lasting way is a complex and long-term challenge.

Methods: We conducted a narrative synthesis of systematic reviews published since 2012, and supplemented this with papers published subsequently as examples of more recent work.

Results: There is evidence for small to moderate positive impacts of both mass media campaigns and interventions for target groups in terms of stigma-related knowledge, attitudes, and intended behaviour in terms of desire for contact. However, the limited evidence from longer follow-up times suggests that it is not clear whether short-term contact interventions have a lasting impact.

Conclusions: The risk that short-term interventions may only have a short-term impact suggests a need to study longer term interventions and to use interim process and outcome data to improve interventions along the way. There is scope for more thorough application of intergroup contact theory whenever contact is used and of evidence-based teaching and assessment methods when skills training is used for target groups.Appeared originally in Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 2017; 52:249-258.

Artificial intelligence (AI) scribes for clinical documentation are likely to be among the first AI tools to affect the day-to-day practice of psychiatry, yet many psychiatrists are unfamiliar with them. This article introduces psychiatrists to AI scribes, including their potential benefits and risks. AI scribes may enhance efficiency, reduce physician burnout, and improve patient-physician rapport by automating documentation processes. Key concerns include privacy, accuracy, and the ability to capture nuanced patient communication. Initial recommendations for responsibly integrating AI scribes into psychiatric practice are provided, emphasizing the importance of balancing technological benefits with careful oversight.

Mental health experts recognize that comprehensive communications programs play a role in addressing the mental health crisis in the United States. In order to reframe discourses around mental health, reduce stigma, and increase prioritization of mental health, the Ad Council conducted extensive research that has fueled the development of "Love, Your Mind," a national communications campaign launched in October 2023 with founding support from Huntsman Mental Health Institute. This article focuses on insights derived from a large-scale audience segmentation study that identified six segments across total U.S. residents (ages 16-65), differentiated by mental health-related attitudes and behaviors. Insights led to profiling of priority audiences to target in the first phase of the campaign and the development of tailored messaging and media strategies. Analyses of early measures have shown that the campaign has already achieved substantial reach and influence, leading to positive differences in attitudes toward mental health.

Historically, the suicide rates in rural and Indigenous communities have been disproportionately high. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, stigma, mental health workforce shortages, and the diminished health care infrastructure in rural and remote regions have only amplified this trend. Fortunately, several innovative and culturally responsive approaches have been developed in the context of these communities to address these persisting mental health disparities. Two specific approaches, embedded school mental health partnerships and telehealth solutions, are described in detail in this article. Both examples have shown considerable promise in stemming the tide of these sobering epidemiological trends in rural and Indigenous communities.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1176/appi.focus.20220088.].

The United States is experiencing a mental health crisis, with COVID-19 increasing the prevalence of mental health concerns and demand for services, but also leaving millions without care, including many who do not know that treatment is needed or available. The American Psychiatric Association Foundation's Mental Health Care Works campaign was informed by results from an assessment of mental health awareness and perceptions of adults in the United States. These results highlighted the need for more public education about the efficacy of mental health care and ongoing need to normalize treatment and make care more accessible and relatable. The campaign features examples of success stories of treatment and helps spread the message that mental health care is effective. The campaign materials are a resource for health professionals to provide education to patients and society, informing them that mental health care works and that there is no health without mental health.