Psychiatric News (4/1) reports a study found that “people who gamble on sports are disproportionately more likely to engage in binge drinking.” The study included “data from 4,363 adults about their gambling and drinking habits.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Sports Gamblers More Likely to Binge Drink, Study Shows, Psychiatric News, April 1, 2024

KFF Health News (4/1, Leys ) reports that privately-run psychiatric hospitals are part of “a national trend toward having such hospitals owned by investors instead of by state governments or nonprofit health systems.” In Iowa, “two out-of-state companies have developed psychiatric hospitals” since 2020, “and now a third company has obtained a state ‘certificate of need’ to open a 60-bed facility in Grinnell.” Before 2020, there were “no privately owned, free-standing psychiatric hospitals” in Iowa. Universal Health Services “says it has mental health facilities in 39 states” including Iowa.

Related Links:

— “For-Profit Companies Open Psychiatric Hospitals in Areas Clamoring for Care,”Tony Leys, KFF Health News, April 1, 2024

The Wall Street Journal (4/1, Armour , Subscription Publication) reports on urgent care clinics developed to treat young people facing mental health crises, which are growing given the rising number of patients needing mental healthcare. According to a letter in Psychiatric Services, there were at least 77 such clinics in the US in 2021, and over 20 have opened in the past year east of the Rockies.

Related Links:

— “America’s Mental Health Is Worsening. Special Urgent-Care Clinics Step In.,”Stephanie Armour, HealthDay, April 1, 2024

HealthDay (3/29, Mundell ) reported an analysis found that “U.S. rates of suicide by all methods rose steadily for adolescents between 1999 and 2020” as “over 47,000 Americans between the ages 10 and 19 lost their lives to suicide,” with “sharp increases year by year.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Steady Rise in U.S. Suicides Among Adolescents, Teens,”Ernie Mundell, HealthDay, March 29, 2024

The Hill (3/30, Lonas ) reported a poll from the EdWeek Research Center shows that “teenagers are increasingly using social media to self-diagnose their mental health issues,” specifically, “55 percent of students use social media to self-diagnose, and 65 percent of teachers say they’ve seen the phenomenon in their classrooms.” The poll also shows that “72 percent of educators believe social media has made it easier for students to be more open about mental health struggles they are facing.”

Related Links:

— “Teens’ latest social media trend? Self-diagnosing their mental health issues,”Lexi Lonas, The Hill , March 30, 2024