The AP (4/7, Johnson) reports a study found that healthcare “systems can reduce suicides through patient screening, safety planning and mental health counseling.” The “Zero Suicide Model,” developed in 2021 at Detroit-based Henry Ford Health, focuses on “collaborating with patients to reduce their access to lethal means such as firearms and then following up with treatment.” For all of 2009, “the health system saw no suicides among patients. The researchers then studied what happened when a different health system, Kaiser Permanente, adopted the program in four locations from 2012 through 2019.” They found that “suicides and suicide attempts fell in three of the locations, while the fourth maintained a low rate of suicides and attempts.” The study was published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Suicides and attempts fall in health systems implementing the ‘Zero Suicide Model,’ study finds,”Carla K. Johnson, AP, April 7, 2025

HealthDay (4/4, Thompson ) reported that “more than half of Americans have experienced some such form of discrimination, and this mistreatment dramatically increases their risk of depression or anxiety, a new study says.” According to the study, “nearly 56% of Americans have encountered discrimination in their lives, and almost 4% said they’d experienced high levels of discrimination.” Additionally, results show that “those exposed to high levels of discrimination are five times more likely to be diagnosed with depression or anxiety, and nearly nine times more likely to screen positive for both mood disorders.” Discrimination was most common among Black Americans, multiracial people, “women, immigrants and people with disabilities or obesity, researchers said.” Researchers concluded, “Our results are a powerful reminder that discrimination is everyone’s issue – and addressing it benefits society as a whole.” The study was published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Discrimination Dramatically Increases Risk for Depression, Anxiety,”Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, April 4, 2025

HealthDay (4/3, Thompson ) reports a study found that “teenagers who spend more time on screens tend to get worse sleep, both in terms of sleep quality and duration.” While screen time “caused teens to put off sleep until later hours, affecting their wake/sleep cycles,” sleep disturbances are only linked to “later depression symptoms in girls,” but not boys. Specifically, “depression symptoms among girls were more than twice those of boys, a gender difference that’s been found in earlier studies, researchers reported. Results also showed that 38% to 57% of girls’ depression symptoms could be explained by changes in sleep patterns driven by screen use.” Researchers concluded, “The public health recommendation to promote sleep by means of changing screen-related behaviors is…supported by this study.” The study was published in PLOS Global Public Health.

Related Links:

— “Screen Time Linked To Poor Sleep, Depression Among Teen Girls,”Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, April 3, 2025

Fierce Healthcare (4/2, Minemyer ) reports, “Enrollment on the Affordable Care Act’s exchanges has more than doubled over the past several years, with much of that growth coming from red states, according to a new report.” KFF “analysts…found that enrollment in marketplace plans reached 24.3 million for 2025, up from 11.4 million in 2020,” which is “growth of 113% for those five years, the researchers said.”

Related Links:

— “ ACA exchange enrollment has skyrocketed since 2020, with most of the growth in red states: KFF,”Paige Minemyer, Fierce Healthcare, April 2, 2025

Psychiatric News (4/2) reports a study suggests that “starting most hormonal contraceptives in the first year postpartum may raise the risk of depression even among first-time mothers with no recent history of the disorder.” Researchers determined there was “a 49% higher risk of depression among hormonal contraceptive users compared with nonusers, after adjusting for factors.” Moreover, the “prevalence of postpartum depression was 1.54% among all women, which the researchers calculated would have been 1.36% had no one taken contraceptives.” The risk also “varied by type of hormonal contraceptive: Compared with nonuse, levonorgestrel-releasing IUDs raised risk of depression by 27% during the study period, progestogen-only nonoral contraceptives by 40%, combined-hormone pills by 72%, and combined-hormonepatches and vaginal rings by 97%.” The study was published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Taking Hormonal Contraception Postpartum May Raise Risk of Depression, Psychiatric News, April 2, 2025