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Latest News Around the Web
Hospitals With Stronger Nurse Staffing And Healthier Clinical Work Environments Tend To Have Physicians Who Are Less Burned Out, Less Dissatisfied, And Less Likely To Plan Their Departure, Study Finds
Medical Economics (11/24, Littrell) reports, “Hospitals with stronger nurse staffing and healthier clinical work environments tend to have physicians who are less burned out, less dissatisfied, and less likely to plan their departure, according to a large international study.” Investigators came to this conclusion after surveying “more than 6,400 physicians and 15,000 nurses across the United States and six European countries.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.
Related Links:
— “Investing in nurses tied to lower physician burnout, international study finds,”Austin Littrell, Medical Economics , November 24, 2025
Limiting Social Media Use For One Week Shows Mental Health Benefits In Young Adults, Study Finds
The New York Times (11/24, Barry) reports a study found that “dialing down the use of social media for a week reduced symptoms of anxiety, depression and insomnia in young adults.” The participants were “instructed to stay off social media as much as possible,” and “on average reduced it to a half-hour per day from just under two hours. Before and after, the participants answered surveys measuring depression, anxiety, insomnia, loneliness and a number of problematic social media behaviors.” Researchers observed positive changes among the cohort. On average, “symptoms of anxiety dropped by 16.1 percent; symptoms of depression by 24.8 percent; and symptoms of insomnia by 14.5 percent. The improvement was most pronounced in subjects with more severe depression. At the same time, there was no change in reported loneliness – perhaps, the authors wrote, because the platforms play a constructive social role.” The study was published in JAMA Network Open.
Related Links:
— The New York Times (requires login and subscription)
Researchers Compare Interventions For Burnout In Healthcare Professionals
HealthDay (11/21, Gotkine) reported, “Mindfulness-based interventions may reduce burnout among nurses and midwives and among a mixture of health care professionals (HCPs), but professional coaching appears to be most effective for reducing burnout among physicians, according to a review.” Investigators came to this conclusion after examining “the effectiveness of all interventions to mitigate burnout among HCPs in a review of 93 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and six cluster RCTs evaluating individual-level interventions (9,330 participants).” The findings were published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Related Links:
— “Review Compares Interventions for Burnout in Health Care Professionals,”Elana Gotkine, HealthDay, November 21, 2025
Cognitive Training Before Deployment May Prevent PTSD In Some Soldiers, Study Suggests
Psychiatric News (11/21) reported a study suggests that “for every 22 soldiers who receive an intervention designed to modify their attention bias prior to deployment, one case of postcombat PTSD could be prevented.” For the study, “501 male combat-bound Israeli soldiers received one of the three interventions during their basic training.” Researchers observed that “one year after study participants were exposed to combat, fewer than 1% of those who received response-time-based attention bias training self-reported PTSD symptoms significant enough to be considered probable PTSD. By comparison, 2.7% of soldiers who received an eye-tracking-based attention intervention and 5.3 % who received a sham intervention reported probable PTSD.” Researchers noted that “the difference between the response-time intervention and sham was statistically significant, with a number-needed-to-treat estimate of 22.” The study was published in The American Journal of Psychiatry.
Related Links:
— “Could Cognitive Training Before Deployment Prevent PTSD in Soldiers?, Psychiatric News, November 21, 2025
Buprenorphine Can Reduce Opioid Overdose Risk In Teenagers And Young Adults If Taken As Directed Long-Term, Study Finds
HealthDay (11/20, Thompson) reports a study found that “the opioid addiction medication buprenorphine can dramatically lower risk of overdose among teenagers and young adults – but only if taken long-term.” According to researchers, “those who kept taking buprenorphine as prescribed for at least a year were much less likely to suffer an overdose or require hospitalization due to opioid use.” Study results showed that young people 13 to 26 “who quit buprenorphine within 3 to 9 months had an 82% higher risk of overdose compared to those who stayed on the med for a year. Likewise, those who stopped in less than 3 months had a 76% higher risk of overdose.” Researchers also found that it “mattered if patients took their buprenorphine as directed. Those who stayed on buprenorphine for a year but had spotty adherence had a 46% higher risk of OD, compared to those who stuck to their prescribed regular dose.” The study was published in Pediatrics.
Related Links:
— “Buprenorphine Lowers Opioid OD Risk, But Only If Taken As Directed Long-Term,”Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, November 20, 2025
Foundation News
Cooper to Receive Anti-Stigma Advocacy Award
Damion Cooper, Th.M. will be awarded the 2019 Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry (MFP) Anti-Stigma Advocacy Prize for his op-ed, “Surviving a gunshot, one man’s story” in the October 18, 2018 Baltimore Sun. The MFP Board unanimously felt that his article was the most deserving of this year’s recognition. Being shot is unfortunately a somewhat common experience for some residents of Baltimore, and the culture of not talking about it makes recovery very difficult for survivors. The Board believes that his courage may empower others to seek help and speak more openly about their own or their family’s suffering.
The Anti-Stigma Advocacy Award carries a $500 prize, which will be formally presented at the Maryland Psychiatric Society annual meeting on April 25.
The Foundation established this annual prize for a worthy piece published in a major newspaper (preferably local or regional) that accomplishes one or more of the following:
- Shares with the public their experience with mental illness in themselves, a family member, or simply in the community.
- Helps others to overcome their inability to talk about mental illness or their own mental illness.
- Imparts particularly insightful observations on the general subject of mental illness.
Related Links:
— “Surviving a gunshot, one man’s story,” Damion J. Cooper, Baltimore Sun, October 18, 2018
Latest Foundation Ad Examines Reliving Trauma Via News and Events
Events and reports in the news can activate painful memories, causing people to relive and have to deal with abuse years after they thought they had successfully handled it via therapy or repression. A new public service ad by the Foundation is airing now that explores how someone to talk to, particularly a psychiatrist, can help cope.
Trauma: Never too late to speak, especially to a psychiatristTrauma: Never too late to speak, especially to a psychiatrist, MP3, 2.5MB
You can listen to the ad using the player in the upper right of the website’s homepage. All past public service spots are also available for listening or to download on our Radio Advertisements page.
This Is My Brave Project Added to Featured Websites
This Is My Brave (TIMB) has been added to our Links & Publications page. The goal of the non-profit aligns directly with our own here at the Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry: to end the stigma surrounding mental health issues. They focus on sharing personal stories of individuals living successful, full lives despite mental illness through poetry, essay and original music, on stage in front of a live audience, through stories submitted and published to their blog, and via their YouTube channel.
Two of our directors, Dr. Komrad and Mr. Wiggins, recently attended a local event and reported the program was well-attended and very moving. TIMB has 17 more shows planned across the United states and 2 upcoming in Australia. You can find more information about the organization via their web site: https://thisismybrave.org/
Dr. Daniel Hale to Receive Anti-Stigma Advocacy Award
W. Daniel Hale, Ph.D. has been awarded the 2018 Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry Anti-Stigma Advocacy Prize for his op-ed, “We need to talk about depression” in the June 13, 2016 Baltimore Sun. The Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry Board of Directors chose the piece from among several nominees. Dr. Hale eloquently writes in a very personal way about his daughter’s depression and suicide and his own depression and successful recovery. His courage to speak openly about suffering may give others the courage to speak about their own, or their family’s experiences. Hiding depression only makes it harder to get help and delays recovery.
The award carries a $500 prize, which will be formally presented at the Maryland Psychiatric Society annual meeting on April 26.
The Foundation established this annual prize for a worthy piece published in a major newspaper (preferably local or regional) that accomplishes one or more of the following:
• Shares with the public their experience with mental illness in themselves, a family member, or simply in the community.
• Helps others to overcome their inability to talk about mental illness or their own mental illness.
• Imparts particularly insightful observations on the general subject of mental illness.
Foundation Radio Ad Looks At Mental Health after School Shootings
To date in 2018 there have been 18 school shootings, and the effects upon those who experience them as well as those fearing such a thing might happen to their school are real and long term. A new public service ad by the Foundation is airing now that explores how and why student, teachers, and parents may be acting as they are and how psychiatry can help them heal and get beyond the trauma.
Anxiety and Mental Health in Wake of School ShootingsAnxiety and Mental Health in Wake of School Shootings, MP3, 1.5MB
You can listen to the ad using the player in the upper right of the website’s homepage. All past public service spots are also available for listening or to download on our Radio Advertisements page.