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The UK has the highest rate of cannabis use among young people worldwide. Dr. Alan Leshner, Director of the National Institute of Drug Abuse reports, "Every year more than 100,000 people, most of them adolescents, seek treatment for their inability to control their marijuana use." According to the Scottish Drug Misuse Statistics in Scotland 2002, 51% of individuals under 20 years have used cannabis. Cannabis use is not limited to youth; it is also the single-most used illicit drug among adults. Because of their widespread negative impact, illicit drugs have become a focus of the agenda of the English Parliament and there is ongoing debate on how to combat this problem. As the research assistant of Michael Matheson (MSP), the author compiled this report to gather information on cannabis and to assess approaches that would form the most effective cannabis policy. This research explores whether or not the recent change toward decriminalization is adequate, or if it needs further revising.

During the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, lockdowns and movement restrictions were thought to negatively impact population mental health, since depression and anxiety symptoms were frequently reported. This study investigates the effect of COVID-19 mitigation measures on mental health across the United States, at county and state levels using difference-in-differences analysis. It examines the effect on mental health facility usage and the prevalence of mental illnesses, drawing on large-scale medical claims data for mental health patients joined with publicly available state- and county-specific COVID-19 cases and lockdown information. For consistency, the main focus is on two types of social distancing policies, stay-at-home and school closure orders. Results show that lockdown has significantly and causally increased the usage of mental health facilities in regions with lockdowns in comparison to regions without such lockdowns. Particularly, resource usage increased by 18% in regions with a lockdown compared to 1% decline in regions without a lockdown. Also, female populations have been exposed to a larger lockdown effect on their mental health. Diagnosis of panic disorders and reaction to severe stress significantly increased by the lockdown. Mental health was more sensitive to lockdowns than to the presence of the pandemic itself. The effects of the lockdown increased over an extended time to the end of December 2020., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled chatbots are increasingly being used to help people manage their mental health. Chatbots for mental health and particularly 'wellness' applications currently exist in a regulatory 'gray area'. Indeed, most generative AI-powered wellness apps will not be reviewed by health regulators. However, recent findings suggest that users of these apps sometimes use them to share mental health problems and even to seek support during crises, and that the apps sometimes respond in a manner that increases the risk of harm to the user, a challenge that the current US regulatory structure is not well equipped to address. In this Perspective, we discuss the regulatory landscape and potential health risks of AI-enabled wellness apps. Although we focus on the United States, there are similar challenges for regulators across the globe. We discuss the problems that arise when AI-based wellness apps cross into medical territory and the implications for app developers and regulatory bodies, and we outline outstanding priorities for the field., (© 2024. Springer Nature America, Inc.)

The genesis and spread of COVID-19 around the world since 2020 have caused severe impacts in every aspect of people's lives, from work life to recreation, social activities to physical health. Higher education has not been excluded. Universities have altered curriculum, changed delivery methods, provided more counseling, purchased new technology, and altered attendance policy for classroom, athletic, social and artistic events (Hamlin, 2021). To assess the impacts of these changes on college students, the authors created a questionnaire to ask students about their perceptions of these COVID-related impacts on their own personal lives. The survey had 56 questions about how the virus affected their academic, social, financial, physical and emotional lives. Over 800 students responded with objective input and subjective comments. Due to the volume of data, the authors have split the study into two parts. The survey results for the first part, academic and social aspects of the survey, were published in "Understanding the Impact of Covid-19 on College Student Academic and Social Lives," Research in Higher Education Journal Volume 41 (see http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/213347.pdf). It will sometimes be referred to herein to provide clarity to the reader. The actual survey itself can also be found at that site. This paper focuses on the impact of the coronavirus on student financial and physical well-being, which have become major stressors to this age group and have contributed to higher levels of anxiety and depression. It also examines how the virus has affected their social and emotional well-being. Lastly, recommendations are made to help educators understand the severity of the problem, and to take action to provide assistance for those students who have been adversely affected.

The COVID-19 pandemic brings to the fore strengths and weaknesses in many public policies, including higher education. There are at least three separate but related areas where institutions of higher learning have been stressed by COVID-19: financing, issues related to the logistics of learning, and inequality. These problems are especially pronounced in countries that suffer from high levels of inequality, such as Chile. This editorial offers a review of some of these challenges and their implication for long-term education policy, touching on the cases of Chile, Canada, and the United States.

International students leave their countries to pursue their educational goals in a different country and must adapt to succeed. However, they may face challenges when adapting to and learning a new culture. This study investigates the challenges common to international students in their host countries and summarizes the publishing trends. A literature search of peer-reviewed articles published in Scopus, Taylor & Francis, EBSCO Host, Web of Science, Springer, PubMed, and Wiley Online over 21 years (2002-2022) was done for data collection. After the screening, a total of 175 articles were included in this review and analyzed with content analysis. The findings show that the top four destinations for international students (USA, UK, Australia, and Canada) produced the most articles about international students' challenges. Additionally, most papers investigated more than one challenge, and sociocultural (82.9%) and academic challenges (82.3%) were the most researched, with language issues as the primary cause. The results also show no changes or improvement in the challenges of international students in 21 years, and areas such as psychological and economic challenges need more research. These challenges and other trends found in the articles are discussed and directions for future research are suggested.

This review aims to address the major sources of stress experienced by international students, the role of individual differences, the chronology of their stress levels and wellbeing over time, and gaps in the existing literature. Two electronic databases (PubMed and Psych Info) were searched for English peer-reviewed articles using eight search terms. Thirty-eight studies were included in this paper and divided into themes and sub-themes including sources of stress, individual differences and mental health including stress, depression and wellbeing. The findings highlight major stressors and show mixed results in some areas due to the lack of homogenous samples based on country of origin or ethnicity and sometimes context differences concerning the country or university social dynamics. Limitations were identified in the methodology, and several recommendations for future research are included.

Background: Despite disproportionate rates of mental ill-health compared with non-Indigenous populations, few programs have been tailored to the unique health, social, and cultural needs and preferences of young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males. This paper describes the process of culturally adapting the US-based Young Black Men, Masculinities, and Mental Health (YBMen) Project to suit the needs, preferences, culture, and circumstances of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males aged 16–25 years in the Northern Territory, Australia. YBMen is an evidence-based social media-based education and support program designed to promote mental health, expand understandings of gender and cultural identities, and enhance social support in college-aged Black men. Methods: Our adaptation followed an Extended Stages of Cultural Adaptation model. First, we established a rationale for adaptation that included assessing the appropriateness of YBMen's core components for the target population. We then investigated important and appropriate models to underpin the adapted program and conducted a non-linear, iterative process of gathering information from key sources, including young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males, to inform program curriculum and delivery. Results: To maintain program fidelity, we retained the core curriculum components of mental health, healthy masculinities, and social connection and kept the small cohort, private social media group delivery but developed two models: 'online only' (the original online delivery format) and 'hybrid in-person/online' (combining online delivery with weekly in-person group sessions). Adaptations made included using an overarching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing framework and socio-cultural strengths-based approach; inclusion of modules on health and wellbeing, positive Indigenous masculinities, and respectful relationships; use of Indigenous designs and colours; and prominent placement of images of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander male sportspeople, musicians, activists, and local role models. Conclusions: This process resulted in a culturally responsive mental health, masculinities, and social support health promotion program for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males. Next steps will involve pilot testing to investigate the adapted program's acceptability and feasibility and inform further refinement. Keywords: Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander, Indigenous, Australia, male, cultural adaptation, social media, mental health, masculinities, social support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the author argues for a more humanistic approach to children and young people who face difficulties in their personal and social lives. Increasingly, young people in the developed world who are troubled or troublesome in school or in their neighbourhoods are categorised and labelled in terms of psychiatric disorder. The number of children taking psychotropic drugs is increasing rapidly in the most affluent countries. The need for wider markets for drug manufacturers suggests that this phenomenon will soon become even more widespread. While it may sometimes be appropriate to prescribe medication for children with mental health problems, in countries like Britain, the USA and Australia this solution can often be too quickly reached. In this paper, the author argues for the development of a multi-dimensional model which recognises that individual young men and women have their own subjectivities and may have personal troubles; but she also acknowledges that the way such troubles are expressed and described reflects the enmeshing of the individual experience with a complex range of social factors.

Education is a public health issue. Poor educational outcomes are correlated with many health and social ills. To improve the quality of education, it will be necessary to take advantage of the leverage points of policy, evidence, and implementation science. The idea of evidence informing policy may be non-controversial, but a closer examination of the concept suggests greater complexity than is readily apparent. Even if policy is informed by evidence, it is necessary to utilize what is known from implementation science to assure that policies are actually implemented well enough to achieve the desired benefits. In this paper, we discuss how policy, evidence, and implementation science can be integrated to leverage the impact of evidence-based practices and bring about meaningful, systematic change to the educational system. The change in mental health services in Norway is used as an exemplar for occasioning change. We also review policy initiatives that failed to achieve outcomes because evidence or implementation science was not part of the initiative. Finally, suggestions are made about these three elements that can be applied to bring about change in teacher preparation programs.

Background: Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, a great number of papers have been published in the pediatric field. Objective: We aimed to assess research around the globe on COVID-19 in the pediatric field by bibliometric analysis, identifying publication trends and topic dissemination and showing the relevance of publishing authors, institutions, and countries. Methods: The Scopus database was comprehensively searched for all indexed documents published between January 1, 2020, and June 11, 2020, dealing with COVID-19 in the pediatric population (0-18 years). A machine learning bibliometric methodology was applied to evaluate the total number of papers and citations, journal and publication types, the top productive institutions and countries and their scientific collaboration, and core keywords. Results: A total of 2301 papers were retrieved, with an average of 4.8 citations per article. Of this, 1078 (46.9%) were research articles, 436 (18.9%) were reviews, 363 (15.8%) were letters, 186 (8.1%) were editorials, 7 (0.3%) were conference papers, and 231 (10%) were categorized as others. The studies were published in 969 differentjournals, headed by The Lancet. The retrieved papers were published by a total of 12,657 authors from 114 countries. The most productive countries were the United States, China, and Italy. The four main clusters of keywords were pathogenesis and clinical characteristics (keyword occurrences: n=2240), public health issues (n=352), mental health (n=82), and therapeutic aspects (n=70). Conclusions: In the pediatric field, a large number of articles were published within a limited period on COVID-19, testifying to the rush to spread new findings on the topic in a timely manner. The leading authors, countries, and institutions evidently belonged to the most impacted geographical areas. A focus on the pediatric population was often included in general articles, and pediatric research about COVID-19 mainly focused on the clinical features, public health issues, and psychological impact of the disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Implementation science (IS) offers methods to systematically achieve the Ending the HIV Epidemic goals in the United States, as well as the global UNAIDS targets. Federal funders such as the National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH) have invested in implementation research to achieve these goals, including supporting the AIDS Research Centres (ARCs), which focus on high‐impact science in HIV and mental health (MH). To facilitate capacity building for the HIV/MH research workforce in IS, "grey areas," or areas of IS that are confusing, particularly for new investigators, should be addressed in the context of HIV/MH research. Discussion: A group of IS experts affiliated with NIMH‐funded ARCs convened to identify common and challenging grey areas. The group generated a preliminary list of 19 grey areas in HIV/MH‐related IS. From the list, the authors developed a survey which was distributed to all ARCs to prioritize grey areas to address in this paper. ARC members across the United States (N = 60) identified priority grey areas requiring clarification. This commentary discusses topics with 40% or more endorsement. The top grey areas that ARC members identified were: (1) Differentiating implementation strategies from interventions; (2) Determining when an intervention has sufficient evidence for adaptation; (3) Integrating recipient perspectives into HIV/MH implementation research; (4) Evaluating whether an implementation strategy is evidence‐based; (5) Identifying rigorous approaches for evaluating the impact of implementation strategies in the absence of a control group or randomization; and (6) Addressing innovation in HIV/MH IS grants. The commentary addresses each grey area by drawing from the existing literature (when available), providing expert guidance on addressing each in the context of HIV/MH research, and providing domestic and global HIV and HIV/MH case examples that address these grey areas. Conclusions: HIV/MH IS is key to achieving domestic and international goals for ending HIV transmission and mitigating its impact. Guidance offered in this paper can help to overcome challenges to rigorous and high‐impact HIV/MH implementation research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One in three children in the United States is exposed to insecure housing conditions, including unaffordable, inconsistent, and unsafe housing. These exposures have detrimental impacts on youth mental health. Delineating the neurobehavioral pathways linking exposure to housing insecurity with children's mental health has the potential to inform interventions and policy. However, in approaching this work, carefully considering the lived experiences of youth and families is essential to translating scientific discovery to improve health outcomes in an equitable and representative way. In the current paper, we provide an introduction to the range of stressful experiences that children may face when exposed to insecure housing conditions. Next, we highlight findings from the early-life stress literature regarding the potential neurobehavioral consequences of insecure housing, focusing on how unpredictability is associated with the neural circuitry supporting cognitive and emotional development. We then delineate how community-engaged research (CEnR) approaches have been leveraged to understand the effects of housing insecurity on mental health, and we propose future research directions that integrate developmental neuroscience research and CEnR approaches to maximize the impact of this work. We conclude by outlining practice and policy recommendations that aim to improve the mental health of children exposed to insecure housing., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest None., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

The number of students on university and college campuses that are struggling with depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, and psychosis across North America is rising (Gallagher, 2008). This intensification of students' psychological needs has become a mental health crisis. The age at which many mental disorders manifest themselves is between 18 and 24, which coincides directly with the average age of student enrollment in higher education (Kessler et al., 2005). Adolescent suicide rates have tripled over the past 60 years, making suicide the second leading cause of death for that age group (Vastag, 2001). Studies conducted by the American College Health Association (2005) suggest that 12 to 18 percent of college students are being treated for a mental disorder. Canadian statistics mirror the tragic rate of mental disorders in American university students. Studies have also shown that there are more students seeking psychological care than in previous decades (Watkins, Hunt, & Eisenberg, 2011). The mental health crisis faced by North American institutions of higher education is relevant to institutional funding challenges, as the crisis is creating a growing need for financial and human resources to address this serious problem. Counselling centres in post-secondary educational institutions have difficulty meeting the growing needs of students as they are underfunded and understaffed. Resources are required to increase staffing, improve training, and increase physical space on campus for counselling centres (Kadison & DiGeronimo, 2004). There is evidence to support the reality of the mental health crisis, and the serious challenge it poses for post-secondary educational institutions. What are the factors behind this crisis? This paper identifies six factors that recent research has implicated as contributing to the mental health crisis: academic pressure, financial burden, increased accessibility of higher education, increased female to male student ratio, increased use of technology, and dramatic change in the lifestyle of university and college students. All of these factors play an important role in the mental health crisis.

This paper reviews a body of research on the author's Silver Drawing Test (SDT) and Draw A Story (DAS) art-based assessments, which span 40 years of development. The original impetus for the assessment is described and studies are reviewed that examined relationships between depression, abuse, and aggression; cognitive skills; interrater and retest reliability; normative data; and treatment outcomes in the United States, Thailand, and Russia. Findings from these studies suggest that drawing responses that are strongly negative (receiving of a score of 1 out of a total possible 5 points) on both the Emotional Content and the Self-Image scales can provide early identification of children and adolescents who may be at risk for depression. (Contains 1 figure.)

Immigrant communities in the United States are diverse and have many assets. Yet, they often experience stressors that can undermine the mental health of residents. To fully promote mental health and well-being among immigrant communities, it is important to emphasize population-level policies and practices that may serve to mitigate stress and prevent mental health disorders. In this paper, we describe the stressors and stress experienced by immigrant families, using Sunset Park, Brooklyn as an example. We discuss ways to build structures and policies in support of equitable environments that promote mental health at the population level and enable families and their children to thrive., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Kerker, Barajas-Gonzalez, Rojas, Norton and Brotman.)

Introduction: Physical activity has been extensively studied and numerous mental health benefits have been found. Pickleball is an emerging racquet sport, which is characterized by its accessibility to all audiences and has become especially popular in the United States among the elderly. It is a novel team game and its inclusive nature is innovative for health improvement. The purpose of this systematic review was to review and evaluate existing studies that have examined the effects of pickleball on the mental and psychological health of individuals. Methods: A systematic review was conducted on articles found in Scopus, PubMed, Elsevier, Web of Science (WoS), PsyINFO, Dialnet, and Elton B. Stephens Company (EBESCO) from 1975 to the present. The keywords used was a five combination between “Pickleball” joint with different terms by the connector AND, the second part of the combo could be “mental disorder” OR “anxiety” OR “depression” OR “psychological health” OR “mental health.” Eligibility criteria included: papers focused on pickleball, in English or Spanish, on mental health variables, without establishing an age range. We excluded duplicate works, without access or that did not address the objective of this study. Results: The search resulted in 63 papers, of which 13 were selected. A total of 90.74% of the population were people over 50 years of age. The results show significant improvements in the different psychological variables measured in pickleball practitioners: personal wellbeing, life satisfaction, depression, stress, happiness, etc., pickleball shows potential as a new tool to work and improve people’s mental health. Conclusions: The pickleball is displayed as an inclusive sport that does not need adaptations, resulting of great interest to be worked in different populations with mental problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literature unequivocally demonstrates that lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals experience disproportionate mental health and social wellbeing impacts. Here, we respond to recent calls for research in the field of sexual minority health to better understand why various overlapping and intersecting identities can further drive health disparities. In this paper, we focus on the specific intersections of ethnicity and sexuality for Asian LGB individuals and the role of internalized stigma in driving poorer mental health outcomes for this group. We recruited 148 LGB Asian participants residing in the United States ( M age = 22.82 years, SD = 4.88) to participate in our online cross-sectional survey in which we collected data on their internalized stigma, levels of guilt and shame about their sexuality, and measures of depression, anxiety, and distress. Contrary to our predictions, there were no bivariate relationships between internalized sexual stigma and any of the mental health outcomes. However, a parallel mediation analysis revealed that guilt, but not shame, mediates the relationship between internalized sexual stigma and all mental health outcomes (depression, anxiety, and stress) for LGB Asian American individuals. This research highlights the important of exploring additional variables that may exacerbate of protect against poor mental health for individuals with multiple intersecting identities.

Despite the growing emphasis on workplace diversity and inclusion, ageism remains prevalent in various industries, including construction. Through an extensive review of literature and a United States national-level survey, this paper investigates the adverse impacts of ageism on the overall well-being of the construction workforce, focusing on their mental and physical health. The questionnaire was distributed among individuals working in the construction industry sector who were randomly selected and received 72 responses. The data obtained were analyzed statistically using binomial logistic regression in modeling the relationship between ageism, and mental and physical health of the construction workforce. The research results indicate that ageism has a statistically significant (p < .001) positive relationship between both the mental and physical health of the construction workforce. The results, therefore, show that ageism has an impact on the mental and physical well-being of workers in the construction industry. Furthermore, the results show that individuals in the construction workforce who experience ageism are more likely to have their mental health and physical well-being impacted compared to those who don’t experience ageism. Consequently, the results highlight the need for proactive measures to combat age discrimination and promote a healthier and more inclusive work environment for construction workers of all ages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the relationship between religiosity, spirituality, and loneliness in the United States, using the 2018 General Social Survey to assess their interactions against a backdrop of declining traditional religious affiliation and a rise in "spiritual but not religious" identification. It examines religion and spirituality's capacity to counteract loneliness, a condition with significant health implications. The analysis uncovers complex relationships between aspects of religious life and loneliness, showing no mitigating role of spirituality when controlling for other factors, with complex and varied negative relationships of religious service attendance and self-rate religiosity to different aspects of loneliness. Yet, any potentially protective effect of religion varies, with minority religious groups reporting feelings of increased loneliness. These findings underscore religion and spirituality's nuanced roles in emotional well-being, indicating that their benefits (or not) against loneliness are complex, varied, and depend on the aspect of religion or loneliness observed, along with non-religious factors. The paper contributes to the literature on societal loneliness, changing religious and spiritual engagements, and highlighting the need for a comprehensive approach to explore the role of religion and spirituality in understanding loneliness specifically, and personal and social well-being more generally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Indigenous children living in high income countries have a consistently high prevalence of mental health problems. We aimed to identify psychosocial risk and protective factors for mental health in this setting. Methods: A systematic review of studies published between 1996 and 2016 that quantitatively evaluated the association between psychosocial variables and mental health among Indigenous children living in high income countries was conducted. Psychosocial variables were grouped into commonly occurring domains. Individual studies were judged to provide evidence for an association between a domain and either good mental health, poor mental health, or a negligible or inconsistent association. The overall quality of evidence across all studies for each domain was assessed using the Grades of Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) guidelines. Results: Forty-seven papers were eligible (mainland US 30 [64%], Canada 8 [17%], Australia 7 [15%], Hawaii 4 [9%]), including 58,218 participants aged 4-20 years. Most papers were cross-sectional (39, 83%) and measured negative mental health outcomes (41, 87%). Children's negative cohesion with their families and the presence of adverse events appeared the most reliable predictors of increased negative mental health outcomes. Children's substance use, experiences of discrimination, comorbid internalising symptoms, and negative parental behaviour also provided evidence of associations with negative mental health outcomes. Positive family and peer relationships, high self-esteem and optimism were associated with increased positive mental health outcomes. Conclusions: Quantitative research investigating Indigenous children's mental health is largely cross-sectional and focused upon negative outcomes. Indigenous children living in high income countries share many of the same risk and protective factors associated with mental health. The evidence linking children's familial environment, psychological traits, substance use and experiences of discrimination with mental health outcomes highlights key targets for more concerted efforts to develop initiatives to improve the mental health of Indigenous children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Primary healthcare services have principal responsibility for providing child and youth wellbeing and mental health services, but have lacked appropriate measurement instruments to assess the wellbeing of Indigenous children and youth or to evaluate the effectiveness of programs and services designed to meet their needs. This review assesses the availability and characteristics of measurement instruments that have been applied in primary healthcare services in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United States (CANZUS countries) to assess the wellbeing of Indigenous children and youth. Methods: Fifteen databases and 12 websites were searched in December 2017 and again in October 2021. Pre-defined search terms pertained to Indigenous children and youth, CANZUS country names, and wellbeing or mental health measures. PRISMA guidelines were followed, with eligibility criteria guiding screening of titles and abstracts, and selected full-text papers. Results are presented based on the characteristics of documented measurement instruments assessed according to five desirability criteria: development for Indigenous youth populations, adherence to relational strength-based constructs, administration by child and or youth self-report, reliability and validity, and usefulness for identifying wellbeing or risk levels. Results: Twenty-one publications were found that described the development and or use by primary healthcare services of 14 measurement instruments, employed across 30 applications. Four of the 14 measurement instruments were developed specifically for Indigenous youth populations, four focused solely on strength-based wellbeing concepts but none included all Indigenous wellbeing domains. Conclusion: There is a diversity of measurement instruments available, but few fit our desirability criteria. Although it is possible that we missed relevant papers and reports, this review clearly supports the need for further research to develop, refine or adapt instruments cross-culturally to measure the wellbeing of Indigenous children and youth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This study explores the association between self-perceived personal and community changes due to COVID-19 and health among vulnerable primary care patients experiencing multiple chronic conditions. Methods: Between September 2017 and February 2021, we obtained data from 2,426 primary care patients managing multiple chronic conditions from across the United States. We assessed the relationship between self-perceived personal and community changes due to COVID-19 and change in health measured by the PROMIS-29 mental and physical health summary scores, GAD-7 (anxiety), andPHQ-9 (depression), and DASI (functional capacity) adjusting for relevant demographic, neighborhood characteristics, and county covariates. Results: After adjustment, self-perceived personal and community changes due to COVID-19 were associated with significantly worse mental health summary scores (ß = -0.55; 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = -0.72, -0.37), anxiety (ß = 0.28; 95% CI = 0.16, 0.39), depression (ß = 0.35; 95% CI = 0.22, 0.47), and physical health summary scores (ß = -0.44; 95% CI = 0.88, 0.00). There was no association with functional capacity (ß = - 0.05; 95% CI = -0.16, 0.05). Discussion: Among adults managing multiple chronic conditions, self-perceived personal and community changes due to COVID-19 were associated with health. This vulnerable population may be particularly susceptible to the negative effects of COVID-19. As we do not know the long-term health effects of COVID, this paper establishes a baseline of epidemiological data on COVID-19 burden and health among primary care patients with multiple chronic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has shed light on long-standing constitutional violations within the US correctional system, particularly affecting vulnerable populations such as senior inmates. By analyzing the impact of COVID-19 in prisons, the challenges faced in implementing preventive strategies, and the specific vulnerabilities of elderly prisoners, this paper identifies potential constitutional infringements experienced by senior inmates during the pandemic and the physical, mental, and social effects of the pandemic on this population. Specifically, this paper aims to bridge the fields of constitutional law, prison reform, elder law, and the COVID-19 pandemic by examining the impact of the pandemic on the rights of senior inmates under the US Constitution's Eighth Amendment protection against cruel and unusual punishment. The objective is to examine whether potential violations have occurred and propose actions to prevent violations in the future while ensuring accountability and redress if such violations occur. To address such violations, the paper emphasizes the need for increased sanitation measures and decarceration as preventive measures in future public health crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Self-rated physical health (SRPH) and self-rated mental health (SRMH) are both linked to excess morbidity and premature mortality and can vary across rural and urban contexts. This can be particularly problematic for rural residents who have less access to important health care infrastructure. In this paper, we assess the prevalence of and rural-urban disparities at the intersection of SRPH and SRMH, specifically self-rated physical/mental multimorbidity (SRPMM) overall and across rural-urban contexts. Methods: Using a cross-sectional demographically representative national dataset of over 4000 working age adults in the U.S., we expose rural-urban differences in the prevalence of SRPMM and explore individual-level factors that may explain this disparity. Results: Approximately 15 percent of working age adults reported SRPMM, but rural adults were at higher risk than their urban counterparts. However, this disadvantage disappeared for remote rural working-age adults and was attenuated for metro-adjacent rural working-age adults when we controlled for the fact that rural adults had lower household incomes. Conclusion: Findings reveal a higher risk of SRPMM among rural adults, in part because of lower incomes among this group. This work acts as the foundation for facilitating research on and addressing rural-urban disparities in SRPMM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disparities in the prevalence of mental illness are widely reported for people from ethnic minorities. Unlike the United States, there is no legislation for clinical research in the UK to mandate the inclusion of ethnic minorities and they are underrepresented in European trials compared with those conducted in the United States. This restricts generalization of research findings. This systematic review of the barriers to the recruitment of ethnic minority participants into psychiatric research is based on a comprehensive literature search. Nine included papers explore such barriers based on the authors' and participants' experiences of research. These barriers are mainly categorized as: participant related, practical issues, family/community related, health service related and research process issues. This review provides a compilation of important barriers to recruitment which can facilitate future research. The barriers that were identified are not all unique to participants from ethnic minorities, although the way in which they manifest themselves is often distinct in minority groups. It is important that these barriers are considered when designing research design so that solutions to overcome such obstacles can be incorporated in research protocols from the start and appropriate resources allocated. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adolescent years are a time of joy and can represent a challenge for parents and youth, especially for immigrants to the US who are adjusting to their host country. Programs focusing on family skills and positive youth development (PYD) can contribute to youth wellbeing especially, however, few exist for low-income immigrant families. (1) Background: The major goals of this project are to strengthen both PYD and healthy parenting practices by implementing an evidence-informed program, Familias Activas . A theory of change guided the development of Familias Activas in which three factors: parent training, positive youth development, and youth physical activity sessions (soccer) aimed to improve Latinx youth mental health. Youth participated in weekly soccer practices led by trained soccer coaches while parents/caregivers attended parent education. Both sessions lasted eight weeks. (2) Method: We describe the formative stage of the research project as well as the pilot implementation of the Familias Activas program, which provides critical insights for the development of a PYD program. (3) Results: Evaluation surveys were administered to youth and their parents. Thirty youths and sixteen parents completed the survey. The Kidscreen scale had a mean for most items ranging from 3.6 to 4.2. Participating youth were 11 years old and most affirmed they were Latinx. The feasibility program quality mean was 4.2 indicating an overall positive result for the pilot program.. Implications of PYD programs for Latinx youth are discussed. (4) Conclusions: The current paper presents a model for positively influencing the physical and mental wellbeing of Latinx youth and their parents. The model is culturally responsive in its involvement of both parents and youth in programming.

In response to the rapidly evolving coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the All of Us Research Program longitudinal cohort study developed the COVID-19 Participant Experience (COPE) survey to better understand the pandemic experiences and health impacts of COVID-19 on diverse populations within the United States. Six survey versions were deployed between May 2020 and March 2021, covering mental health, loneliness, activity, substance use, and discrimination, as well as COVID-19 symptoms, testing, treatment, and vaccination. A total of 104,910 All of Us Research Program participants, of whom over 73% were from communities traditionally underrepresented in biomedical research, completed 275,201 surveys; 9,693 completed all 6 surveys. Response rates varied widely among demographic groups and were lower among participants from certain racial and ethnic minority populations, participants with low income or educational attainment, and participants with a Spanish language preference. Survey modifications improved participant response rates between the first and last surveys (13.9% to 16.1%, P  < 0.001). This paper describes a data set with longitudinal COVID-19 survey data in a large, diverse population that will enable researchers to address important questions related to the pandemic, a data set that is of additional scientific value when combined with the program's other data sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on the world at large with over 750 million cases and almost 7 million deaths reported thus far. Of those, over 100 million cases and 1 million deaths have occurred in the United States of America (USA). The mental health of the general population has been impacted by several aspects of the pandemic including lockdowns, media sensationalism, social isolation, and spread of the disease. In this paper, we examine the associations that social isolation and COVID-19 infection and related death had with the prevalence of anxiety and depression in the general population of the USA in a state-by-state multiple time-series analysis. Vector Error Correction Models are estimated and we subsequently evaluated the coefficients of the estimated models and calculated their impulse response functions for further interpretation. We found that COVID-19 incidence was positively associated with anxiety across the studied period for a majority of states. Variables related to social isolation had a varied effect depending on the state being considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In addition to concern about physical health consequences of COVID-19, many researchers also note the concerning impact on behavioral health and quality of life due to disruption. The purpose of this paper is to explore pathways of COVID-19 behavioral health and quality of life. We found increased anxiety, depression, and alcohol misuse and that the pandemic exacerbated prior problems. Further community indicators also lead to poorer behavioral health and overall decreased quality of life. The nature of COVID-19 and vast reach of the virus suggests that behavioral health concerns should take a primary role in pandemic recovery., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

COVID-19 has negatively impacted many households' financial well-being, food security, and mental health status. This paper investigates the role financial resources play in understanding the relationship between food security and mental health among U.S. households using data from a survey in June 2020. Results show job loss and savings draw down to pay for household bills had a significant relationship with both lower food security and greater numbers of poor mental health days during the pandemic.

Although there is substantial agreement how microeconomic forces—income, risk aversion—shape public health outcomes, there is substantial disagreement about the relationship between macroeconomic forces—market liberalization and economic freedom—on public health. In this paper, we investigate the relationship between public health, economic freedom, and wealth using a large sample of metropolitan‐level data from the United States. We find that economic freedom does have a statistically significant and positive impact on general, physical, and mental health, but the overall results are small in magnitude. When we disaggregate the three areas of economic freedom, we find that areas with lower government spending and freer labor markets have the strongest positive effect on physical and mental health. However, our results are strongest for the richest group of respondents, suggesting that the economic freedom‐health relationship is perhaps indirect, and shown through income. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Implementation Research Institute (IRI) provides two years of training in mental health implementation science for 10 new fellows each year. The IRI is supported by a National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) R25 grant and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Fellows attend two annual week-long trainings at Washington University in St. Louis. Training is provided through a rigorous curriculum, local and national mentoring, a 'learning site visit' to a federally funded implementation research project, pilot research, and grant writing. Methods: This paper describes the rationale, components, outcomes to date, and participant experiences with IRI. Results: IRI outcomes include 31 newly trained implementation researchers, their new grant proposals, contributions to other national dissemination and implementation research training, and publications in implementation science authored by the Core Faculty and fellows. Former fellows have obtained independent research funding in implementation science and are beginning to serve as mentors for more junior investigators. Conclusions: Based on the number of implementation research grant proposals and papers produced by fellows to date, the IRI is proving successful in preparing new researchers who can inform the process of making evidencebased mental healthcare more available through real-world settings of care and who are advancing the field of implementation science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The purpose of this article was to examine the association of sleep duration and physical activity and their interactions on mental health disorders in American children aged 6-17 years., Methods: Data were analyzed from the combined 2017-2018 National Survey of Children's health. Ultimately, a total of 36370 children aged 6-17 years were selected as the samples. Weighted logistic regression models were used to estimate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals., Results: Insufficient sleep duration was associated with an increased risk for current anxiety, depression, and behavior/conduct problems (odds ratio = 1.449, 1.991, 1.375; 95% confidence interval: 1.313-1.702, 1.648-2.406, 1.162-1.627). Insufficient physical activity was associated with an increased risk for current anxiety (odds ratio = 1.448; 95% confidence interval: 1.230-1.706) and depression (odds ratio = 1.743; 95% confidence interval: 1.304-2.329). In addition, additive interactions between sleep duration and physical activity were observed on current anxiety and depression., Conclusions: Insufficient sleep duration and insufficient physical activity in children were associated with mental health disorders. There is a synergistic interaction effect between insufficient sleep duration and insufficient physical activity on current anxiety and current depression., Competing Interests: The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Shiting Xiang et al.)

Background: Population-based research and community-based interventions are integral to occupational therapy’s scope of practice, yet they are underdeveloped in actual implementation. Therefore, this paper focuses on some health challenges facing the African American population, guided by the PersonEnvironment-Occupation-Performance Model. Method: Using data from an observational cross-sectional nationwide telephone survey of African American adults, we examined differences between African Americans who are receiving disability payments (RDP) and those who are employed full time (FTE) on several physical health behaviors and psychosocial health indicators. We further compared the differences between African Americans RDP versus those FTE on those physical health behaviors and psychosocial health indicators across five US regions. Results: Findings suggest that African Americans RDP are engaging in fewer positive physical health behaviors and experiencing worse psychosocial health compared to their counterparts FTE. There are also nuanced regional variations in the differences between African Americans RDP and FTE in physical health behaviors and psychosocial health indicators. Conclusion: This research highlighted some health challenges of African Americans RDP and FTE using a regional lens, demonstrating the value of OT population-based research. There is a need for OT population-specific community-based practice to address the health disparities of underserved and minority populations, such as African Americans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the field of psychology continues to make efforts to diversify the field, training programs must adapt to include the needs of diverse students. Universities in the United States mirror middle-class norms and values, which implies that students are expected to separate from familial roles and focus on their personal growth. This conflicts with core values and intentions of students from collectivist cultures. Although psychology trainees are obligated to adhere to professional ethical standards, a growing number of psychology trainees from collectivistic cultures need support to manage role conflict within potentially ambiguous standards regarding how to care for family and community members. This need is further complicated when training programs consider the lack of equitable access to mental health care resources in communities where their psychology trainees come from. In this paper, we engage in ethical decision making to address two scenarios representing role conflict between training program expectations and collectivist community and familial obligations. Through this exercise we develop and propose a Decision-Making Model for Addressing Role Conflict for Psychology Trainees. This conceptual model details a novel framework to assist psychology trainees when addressing the mental health of family and community while also providing guidance to help graduate training programs proactively equip their students with the skills and ethical framework they need to balance role conflicts such as when family and community members desire and need mental health support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Over the past decade, antidepressant prescriptions have increased in European countries and the United States, partly due to an increase in the number of new cases of mental illness. This paper demonstrates an innovative approach to the classification of population level change in mental health status, using administrative data for a large sample of the Scottish population. We aimed to identify groups of individuals with similar patterns of change in pattern of prescribing, validate these groups by comparison with other indicators of mental illness, and characterise the population most at risk of increasing mental ill health., Methods: National Health Service (NHS) prescription data were linked to the Scottish Longitudinal Study (SLS), a 5.3% sample of the Scottish population (N = 151,418). Antidepressant prescription status over the previous 6 months was recorded for every month for which data were available (January 2009-December 2014), and sequence dissimilarity was computed by optimal matching. Hierarchical clustering was used to create groups of participants who had similar patterns of change, with multi-level logistic regression used to understand group membership., Results: Five distinct prescription pattern groups were observed, indicating: no prescriptions (76%), occasional prescriptions (10%), continuation of prior use of prescriptions (8%), a new course of prescriptions started (4%) or ceased taking prescriptions (3%). Young, white, female participants, of low social grade, residing in socially deprived neighbourhoods, living alone, being separated/divorced or out of the labour force, were more likely to be in the group that started a new course of antidepressant prescriptions., Conclusions: The use of sequence analysis for classifying individual antidepressant trajectories offers a novel approach for capturing population-level changes in mental health risk. By classifying individuals into groups based on their anti-depressant medication use we can better identify how over time, mental health is associated with individual risk factors and contextual factors at the local level and the macro political and economic scale.

Retirement is an important event in the life of an individual. The decision to retire or exit from full-time employment may be motivated by several factors, including health. This paper explores the effect of both subjective and relatively more objective physical and mental health conditions on the probability of exit from full-time employment. Using longitudinal data on older Americans from ten waves of the Health and Retirement Study (1992–2010), eight health indices are created from a wide range of health measures by principal component analysis. The effect of these health indices on the time until exit from full-time employment is empirically examined in a proportional hazard model. Single and competing risk specifications are estimated that allow for multiple spells of full-time employment and control for unobserved heterogeneity. The main results suggest that better self-reported health decreases the likelihood of exit from full- time employment, while poor physical health (functional limitations factor) increases the likelihood of exit from full-time employment via complete retirement and disability. For mental health, I find that depression increases the likelihood of exit via complete retirement, part-time work and unemployment while cognitive disorders lead to an increase in likelihood of exit via the disability exit route. Hence, physical and mental health problems are both impediments to continued work. These results have implications for public policies targeted towards retaining older workers within the labor market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article forms an attempt to expand the ability of online search queries to predict initial jobless claims in the United States and further explore the intricacies of Google Trends. In contrast to researchers who used only a small number of search queries or limited themselves to job agency explorations, we incorporated keywords from the following six dimensions of Google Trends searches: job search, benefits, and application; mental health; violence and abuse; leisure search; consumption and lifestyle; and disasters. We also propose the use of keyword optimization, dimension reduction techniques, and long-short memory neural networks to predict future initial claims changes. The findings suggest that including Google Trends keywords from other dimensions than job search leads to the improved forecasting of errors; however, the relationship between jobless claims and specific Google keywords is unstable in relation to time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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According to the purposes for the formation of the United Nations, sophistication of institutions like the Security Council must be evaluated based on the provision of peace and how they guarantee human rights. Therefore, in case Security Council does not follow these two mentioned factors, its function would be itself a threat to the international peace and security. This analytical research is based on collecting library theoretical data related to different field studies which investigated the effects of sanctions issued by the Security Council, the United States and the European Union on citizens' health and tried to assess both their efficiency and legitimacy. The right to health is connected with the right of living. In case enough drugs, appropriate treatment and medical equipment are not provided at the proper time, both physical and mental health might be threatened and this can cause death of a large number of people. Considering the Security Council as an institution which is expected to take into account the citizens' basic rights and not to ignore its own initial objective, the present paper was an attempt to provide explanations for the above concepts and their relationships and to analyze the findings of previous field studies. The paper concluded that sanctions issued by the Security Council and the United States are potentially functioning as threats to the international peace and so these sanctions are violating the citizens' right to health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) Project has been investigating the implementation of evidence-based mental health practices (Assertive Community Treatment, Family Psychoeducation, Integrated Dual Diagnosis Treatment, Illness Management and Recovery, and Supported Employment) in state public mental health systems in the United States since 2001. To date, Project findings have yielded valuable insights into implementation strategy characteristics and effectiveness. This paper reports results of an effort to identify and classify state-level implementation activities and strategies employed across the eight states participating in the Project. Methods: Content analysis and Greenhalgh et al's (2004) definition of innovation were used to identify and classify state-level activities employed during three phases of EBP implementation: Pre-Implementation, Initial Implementation and Sustainability Planning. Activities were coded from site visit reports created from documents and notes from key informant interviews conducted during two periods, Fall 2002 - Spring 2003, and Spring 2004. Frequency counts and rank-order analyses were used to examine patterns of implementation activities and strategies employed across the three phases of implementation. Results: One hundred and six discreet implementation activities and strategies were identified as innovative and were classified into five categories: 1) state infrastructure building and commitment, 2) stakeholder relationship building and communications, 3) financing, 4) continuous quality management, and 5) service delivery practices and training. Implementation activities from different categories were employed at different phases of implementation. Conclusion: Insights into effective strategies for implementing EBPs in mental health and other health sectors require qualitative and quantitative research that seeks to: a) empirically test the effects of tools and methods used to implement EBPs, and b) establish a stronger evidence-base from which to plan, implement and sustain such efforts. This paper offers a classification scheme and list of innovative implementation activities and strategies. The classification scheme offers potential value for future studies that seek to assess the effects of various implementation processes, and helps establish widely accepted standards and criteria that can be used to assess the value of innovative activities and strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Youth mental health is a growing concern in research, practice, and policy. Practice standards, guidelines, or strategies provide an invisible infrastructure that fosters equity, quality, and safety, potentially addressing inconsistencies and more effectively attending to the mental wellness of Black youth as a particular population of concern. This scoping review aimed to address the following question: What standards exist for the delivery of mental health services to Black youth in community, primary care, and educational settings? Due to a limited initial search yield on publications about standards for the delivery of mental health services for Black youth population, our goal was then to identify and map mental health standards, recommendations, or guidelines for the delivery of mental health services using the same settings to all youth. Methods: Searches were conducted in various databases, including PubMed/MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Embase, SocINDEX, CINAHL, Gender Studies Database, Social Services Abstracts, Sociological Abstracts, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. Screening was independently conducted by two reviewers, with disagreements resolved by a third. Information extraction was performed by two independent reviewers. Results: Out of the 2,701 screened publications, 54 were included in this scoping review. Among them, 38.9% were published between 2020 and 2023, with 40.7% originating from the United States of America, 20.4% from the United Kingdom, and 13% from Canada. Concerning the settings, 25.9% of the publications focused on primary care, 24.1% on health care services, 20.4% on educational settings, and 3.7% on the community. Additionally, 25.9% were classified as general because recommendations were applicable to various settings. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (11.1%) was the most frequently considered specific condition, followed by autism spectrum disorder (9.3%) and depression (9.3%). However, 31.5% of the included references addressed mental health in general. Only three references provided specific recommendations for the Black population. Conclusions: Recommendations, guidelines, or standards for Black youth mental health services in community, primary care, or educational settings are scarce and limited to North American countries. This scoping review emphasizes the need to consider ethnicity when developing guidelines or standards to improve racial equity and reduce disparities in access to mental health services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]