RESEARCH WEEKLY: March Research Roundup
Research Roundup is a monthly public service of the Office of Research and Public Affairs. Each edition describes a striking new data point about severe mental illness and summarizes recently published research reports or developments.
DATAPOINT of the month
555,000 inmates in correctional institutions in the United States who have not been convicted or sentenced for a crime.
According to the Prison Policy Initiative, who releases an annual state of incarceration, there are more than 555,000 pretrial inmates in correctional institutions in the United States. Pretrial inmates are people who are incarcerated but have not yet been convicted or sentenced of a crime. “As advocates urge prisons and jails to slow the spread of COVID-19 by releasing as many incarcerated people as possible, it's more important than ever to understand how many people are locked up across the country, where, and why,” Pete Wagner, the study author writes.
RESEARCH of the month
Availability of telepsychiatry in US mental health facilities.
As the spread of COVID19 worsens in the United States, more and more health facilities are moving all patients to using telehealth services. By conducting health visits through secure videoconferencing, physicians can continue patient visits while also practicing social distancing.
In a recently published analysis of the availability of telepsychiatry in US mental health facilities, study authors report that the availability of telepsychiatry has increased rapidly in recent years, with almost 30% of mental health facilities offering these services in 2017. However, there is considerable variability among states. Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York have telepsychiatry services available in less than 15% of their mental health facilities, according to the results, all states that have been greatly affected by the COVID19 pandemic. The authors also found that Medicaid funding sources for telepsychiatry services lag behind other funding sources, indicating additional barriers to providing such services to individuals in need.
Black robe or white coat.
In a personal account, Emeritus Chair of Psychiatry at Northeastern Ohio Medical University Mark Munetz, MD reflects on the current status of mental health care in the United States and what is needed to create a better mental health care system. He recalls a conversation he had with a mental health court judge and the great success she is having with her program, including how her relationship building with participants is the driver for improving outcomes for individuals.
“In my mind, it is much more appropriate that the authority who demonstrates such concern would wear a white coat, representing a caring clinician, rather than the black robe of a judge,” Dr. Munetz writes. Due to the way the system is set up and payment and reimbursement models, psychiatrists and mental health professionals have little time to spend with their patients.
“If productivity were redefined and payment mechanisms were changed so that treatment teams could spend time with patients, getting to know them as people and figuring out as a team how best to meet their needs, many of our patients may never need to see the person in the black robe,” Dr. Munetz concludes.
Smartphone use by people with serious mental illness.
Most people with serious mental illness have a mobile phone, and the majority (60%) owned a smartphone, according to a study conducted in Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health and Department of Veterans Affairs. Individuals commonly utilize these phones for messaging, internet use, email, and applications, just like in the general population, according to the results. Mobile interventions for psychosis and cognitive training should be considered feasible by developers and further explored, the study authors argue.
