Dr. Bruce Schwartz, the president of the American Psychiatric Association, writes in a letter to the editor of the Washington Post (11/17) in response to an article from November 12 with the headline “ERs could help curb suicides.” Dr. Schwartz says, “Screening can be an effective way to identify patients with mental-health problems, but it is unlikely to halt the suicide epidemic in this country.” Additionally, “emergency rooms have become the de facto and only mental-health resource for many Americans, even those who have insurance.” Schwartz argues “the article correctly pointed out that once in the emergency room, mental-health patients can wait 24 hours or longer to see a health-care professional and days or weeks for a psychiatric bed,” however, in order to “truly stem the suicide epidemic,” Schwartz says, “we need to devote resources to mental-health care” and “mandate that insurers provide true parity in their plans.”

Related Links:

— “Can ERs help fight the suicide epidemic?, The Washington Post, November 17, 2019

Reuters (11/14, Carroll) reports, “Slight declines in hearing, smaller than the usual cutoff for diagnosing hearing loss, are associated with measurable mental decline in seniors,” research indicated, and when investigators “used a stricter threshold to include mild hearing loss, they found evidence that the well-established link between age-related hearing loss and cognitive decline might begin sooner than is recognized.” The findings of the 6,451-participant study were published online Nov. 14 in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery. MedPage Today (11/14, George) also covers the story.

Related Links:

— “Hearing loss, even when mild, linked to mental decline in seniors, “Linda Carroll, Reuters, November 14, 2019

Healio (11/14, Gramigna) reports, “Patients who present to a hospital for self-harm are at a high risk for suicide in the first year after presentation, and particularly in the first month,” researchers concluded after examining “data for 90,614 presentations to the study hospitals between January 2000 and December 2013 by 49,783 individuals aged 15 years or older.” Mortality was followed up until “Dec. 31, 2015, which allowed for up to 16 years of follow-up.” The findings were published online Nov. 6 in The Lancet Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Suicide risk significantly heightened first month, year after self-harm discharge, “Joe Gramigna, Healio , November 14, 2019

Psychiatric News (11/13) reports, “Having a concussion within the past year may raise the risk of suicidal ideation and behavior in high school students,” researchers concluded after examining “data from more than 13,000 respondents in grades 9 through 12 who participated in the 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey.” The findings were published online Nov. 11 in the Journal of Affective Disorders.

Related Links:

— “Concussions May Raise Risk of Suicide in High School Students, Psychiatric News, November 13, 2019

Newsweek (11/13, Gander) reports, “Rates of cannabis use disorder have risen in U.S. states where the drug has been legalized, including among children and teenagers,” researchers concluded after examining “surveys completed by 505,796 people between 2008 to 2016.” The findings were published online Nov. 13 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Cannabis Use Disorder Is Rising In U.S. States Where Weed Is Legal, “Kashmira Gander , Newsweek, November 13, 2019