Checking In With CMH
Sonam Saxena The killing of Walter Wallace brought home, among other things, the desperate need to reform mental health crisis response programs. Too often, calls to the police end in injury or killing of the person in need. The Washington Post has recorded every fatal shooting by police since 2015. One in five killings are […]
Cross-posted from Penn LDI’s Health Policy$ense Polina Krass, MD As we approach the sixth month of widespread community transmission of COVID-19 in the United States, our focus must shift beyond acute management of disease to the broader effects of this pandemic on health and wellbeing. In particular, it is important that we understand the consequences […]
Cross-posted from Penn LDI’s Health Policy$ense Lily Brown, PhD In recent years, remarkable achievements in HIV testing and antiretroviral therapies have improved the detection, management, and care of persons living with HIV (PLWH). In the 1980s and 90s, patients with HIV infection faced a devastating prognosis. But now, with proper medications and support, PLWH can […]
Molly Candon, PhD Suicidality is more common than many people realize—according to the CDC, almost 10 million Americans experience suicidal ideation every year. Suicidality is also more treatable than many people realize. The “Zero Suicide Model” details the evidence base and care continuum for suicide prevention, starting with improved risk assessment (e.g., validated surveys), psychosocial […]
Cross-posted from Penn LDI’s Health Policy$ense Robin Ortiz, MD and Laura Sinko, PhD As the country looks to reopen and epidemiologists anticipate future waves of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases, we must address an equally important “pandemic:” the virus’ far-reaching mental health and trauma-related consequences. Whether balancing activities of essential work with exposure risk, bearing witness to suffering […]
Sonam Saxena Adjusting to quarantine looks different for everyone. For individuals on the autism spectrum, the substantial daily changes associated with the pandemic have proven especially challenging and confusing. Many recently-published stories detail the challenges that individuals with autism or individuals caring for them currently face, including this one by STAT, this one by […]
Molly Candon Health care workers are center stage in this once-in-a-lifetime crisis, and their exposure to COVID-19 is more than just physical. The challenges that come with delivering care to high-risk and highly contagious patients cannot be understated. It’s difficult to track, but CDC reports suggest that upwards of 20% of COVID-19 reported cases are […]
Molly Candon, David Mandell, and Rebecca Stewart Opioid use disorder continues to afflict communities near and far. A major obstacle facing patients and their families is access to medication therapy, and one reason is the requirement that physicians and some advanced practitioners secure a federal waiver, undergo training, and have a patient cap for prescribing buprenorphine. Why do […]