Medscape (5/29) reports that research published in JAMA Psychiatry indicates that “that psychogenic pain, back pain, and migraine, but not arthritis or neuropathy,” may be “associated with an increased risk for suicide.” Investigators came to this conclusion after looking at data from “treatment records of all patients (n = 4,863,036) who were seen in the Veterans Health Administration system in fiscal year 2005 and who were alive at the start of fiscal year 2006.” While “some of this risk appears to be due to co-occurring mental health problems, there may be something about the experience of pain that also contributes directly to suicide risk, lead author Mark A. Ilgen, PhD, told Medscape Medical News.”

“In the wake of… high-profile killings,” such as the Denver theater and Sandy Hook Elementary massacres, theColumbus (OH) Dispatch (5/26, Johnson, Candisky) reported, “America’s political leaders promised a grieving nation an examination of both guns and mental health.” However, “the discussion again has focused on a firefight over guns, with little real emphasis on the shortcomings of the nation’s underfunded, overwhelmed mental-health system.” The Dispatch notes, “President Barack Obama’s proposed $150 million-plus ‘mental-health first aid’ and similar programs for schools have stalled, while federal funding for the National Institute of Mental Health is being cut by $12 million on top of a 5 percent reduction already targeted from cutbacks known as the sequester.”

In a second article, the Columbus (OH) Dispatch (5/27, Johnson, Candisky) highlighted how access to mental healthcare is “woeful” in Ohio, adding, “With an estimated 57.7 million people in the U.S. suffering from some type of mental illness – approximately 1 in 4 adults – there are no easy answers on how to deal with this complex disease.” However, “one theme is cited again and again, both by experts and families involved in the struggle: Americans simply lack access to adequate mental-health care.”

Related Links:

— “Mental-health system overwhelmed, underfunded, “Alan Johnson, The Columbus Dispatch, May 26, 2013.

The Washington Post (5/25, McCrummen) offers a gripping, 4,165-word report that details a mother’s attempts to help and guide her 19-year-old son through a complex form of schizophrenia. The report follows Naomi Haskell of Houston and her son Spencer through the rolling changes typical of his illness, including hallucinations, depression, and, once, a suicide attempt. The Post says, “This is what it is like to be the mother of a son with a severe mental illness – an hour-to-hour, minute-to-minute vigil. At a time of increasing public concern about the role mental illness might have played in mass shootings in places like Newtown, Conn., and Aurora, Colo., Naomi’s worry on a Tuesday in Texas is different. It’s about keeping her son well.”

Related Links:

— “A mother helps son in his struggle with schizophrenia, “Stephanie McCrummen, The Washington Post, May 25, 2013.

CBS News (5/28, Jaslow) reports on new research out of the American Academy of Pediatrics which shows that “children of military personnel may be at an increased risk for social, emotional and behavioral problems.” Published Monday in the AAP journal Pediatrics, the report “aims to raise awareness among pediatricians for the mental health needs for military children.” In a statement, study author Dr. Beth Ellen Davis said, “In the past 10 years, more than 2 million children in the U.S. have experienced the emotional and stressful event of being separated from a loved one deployed for active duty. Most children cope and adapt quite well, but all children experience a heightened sense of fear and worry during a parent’s deployment. It’s important for pediatricians caring for these families to be aware of their family’s situation so they can guide them appropriately.”

Related Links:

— “Pediatricians warned children of military personnel face mental health risks, “Ryan Jaslow, CBS News, May 27, 2013.

MedPage Today (5/24, Gever) reports, “Prejudices about individuals with mental illness play a role in many healthcare [professionals’] treatment decisions involving physical conditions,” according to research presented at the American Psychiatric Association’s annual meeting. “When [professionals] of all types – even mental health professionals – were presented with hypothetical vignettes of patients with medical conditions such as obesity, the treatment plans differed markedly when the patient also had schizophrenia, said Dinesh Mittal, MD, of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.” Healthcare professionals “tended to assume that schizophrenia patients would be less adherent to instructions, more likely to miss appointments, and less competent at making their own medical decisions – none of which are justified by evidence, Mittal said.”

Related Links:

— “Mental Illness Stigma Affects Medical Tx Plans, ” John Gever, MedPage Today, May 23, 2013.