Medscape (10/6, Davenport) reports, “Young people at risk for depression are less likely to develop the disorder after a cognitive-behavioral prevention (CBP) program, the benefits of which persist for more than six years,” according to the findings of a 316-patient study published online Sept. 30 in JAMA Psychiatry. A grant from the National Institute of Mental Health helped support the study. Reuters (10/6, Doyle) also reports.

Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

USA Today (10/3, Szabo) reported that “23 mental health groups,” including the American Psychiatric Association, “are calling on Congress to pass legislation aimed at repairing the USA’s broken mental health system.” Last Thursday, “the groups delivered a letter” to leaders of the House of Representatives “hours before the attack at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Ore. left 10 people dead.” In the letter, which the APA helped co-author, APA president Renée Binder, MD, asked, “How many more reminders do we need that mental health has to be a high priority?” Dr. Binder added, “This is not a Republican issue or a Democratic issue. This is an American issue.”

Related Links:

— “Groups call on Congress to reform mental health system,” Liz Szabo, USA Today, October 2, 2015.

The Washington Post (10/3, Dennis) “To Your Health” blog wrote that some academics now contend that gun violence should be considered “a public health crisis.” For example, “US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has referred to the problem as a health epidemic.” Last Thursday, following the mass shootings at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, OR, President Obama “lamented ‘a Congress that explicitly blocks us from even collecting data on how we could potentially reduce gun deaths.’”

Related Links:

— “Why we should think of gun violence as a disease, and study it accordingly,” Brady Dennis, Washington Post, October 2, 2015.

HealthDay (10/2, Preidt) reports a new study indicates “early exposure to secondhand smoke may lead to behavioral problems in children.” The study by the French Institute of Health and Medical Research in Paris “analyzed data from more than 5,200 primary school students in France and found that those exposed to secondhand smoke while in the womb and/or at a young age were at higher risk for behavioral problems, particularly emotional and conduct disorders.” The study was published online in PLoS One.

Related Links:

— “Secondhand Smoke Linked to Behavior Issues in Kids,” Robert Preidt, HealthDay, October 1, 2015.

On the CBS Evening News (10/1, story 6, 1:15, Pelley) in response to yesterday’s shootings at Umpqua College in Roseburg, OR, CBS News chief medical correspondent Jonathan LaPook, MD was shown saying that “when it comes to mental illness, early intervention works.” However, “the big problem in the US and elsewhere is access to care.” A new pilot program started this past May at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC is “training the pediatricians” and “schools to evaluate” troubled “kids via tele-medicine.” As it happens, “only 10 percent of the time do those kids then need to be seen face to face by the psychiatrist.” To date, “there are a total of 17 such programs in the” US, all of which operate under the premise that “early intervention, increased access to care, and maybe treating [kids] earlier will make a big difference.”

Related Links:

— “Mass shootings and the mental health connection,” Jonathan Lapook, CBS News, October 1, 2015.