March 25th, 2019
By Susan Gonsalves
Generation Z, individuals ages 15 to 21, feel stressed out about ripped-from-the- headlines topics like school and mass shootings, sexual assault, and immigration according to the annual Stress in America™ survey by the American Psychological Association. The Harris Poll was conducted last summer online among 3,458 adults and 300 15 to 17-year-olds in all 50 states. Although 75 percent of Gen Z members found mass shootings `significantly’ stressful and 72 percent felt that way about school shootings, those kids of voting age were least likely to vote at 54 percent. The overall average had seven in 10 adults expecting to [More]
Tags: Mental health, school shooting, anxiety, Generation Z, stress, Stress in America survey, migrant families
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March 25th, 2019
By Catherine Robertson Souter
We live in a time where boundaries, between people, between cultures, between sexes, are crashing down all around us. Boundaries are the walls that keep us from fulfilling our destiny or getting close to another human or limit freedom of speech and exchange of ideas and information. In the world of therapy, however, setting boundaries plays a different role. From protecting clients from being preyed upon to protecting the therapist from allegations of misconduct, strong boundaries can be crucial both ethically and legally. While it may be obvious that setting boundaries with and for patients benefits both client and therapist, [More]
Tags: therapy, psychologist, clinical practice, boundaries, client, ethical standards
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March 25th, 2019
By Catherine Robertson Souter
New Hampshire may soon see a major overhaul geared toward bringing the state’s mental health care system back to its former glory. For a system that has gone from being second in the country in 1990 as rated by the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI), to earning a D in a revised rating system in 2006, the announcement of a 10-year mental health plan was received with bated breath by stakeholders across the state. With input from residents, professionals, and focus groups, workgroups, and public sessions, the draft plan introduced in November begins by outlining the challenges faced [More]
Tags: New Hampshire, legislation, Medicaid, mental health crisis, mental health plan, draft, policymakers
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March 25th, 2019
By Alan Bodnar Ph.D.
In the depths of winter and longing for spring, I am finding reminders everywhere of how much our lives are consumed by waiting. In the hospital, patients wait to be examined, to be found competent to stand trial, not criminally responsible for the actions that led to their confinement, for the voices to stop, to be allowed to go home. Mothers wait for their babies to be born and people everywhere wait for the results of lab tests, CT scans, and biopsies that will unlock the mysteries of health and illness and give them a glimpse of the future. Every [More]
Tags: anxiety, waiting, uncertainty, optimism, rumination, tolerable
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March 11th, 2019
By Susan Gonsalves
Data from the 2018 Massachusetts Health Reform Survey showed that 56.8 percent of adults ages 19 to 64 who sought help for mental health or substance abuse disorders experienced difficulties obtaining care. The problems included finding a provider who would see them at all or getting an appointment in a timely manner when it was needed. As a result, more than one-third of those adults went without help and 12.7 percent visited an emergency department to address those issues. The Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation and Urban Institute collected the information using data from a random telephone survey involving 2,201 [More]
Tags: psychologists, Mental health, Massachusetts, behavioral health, survey, substance abuse, healthcare
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March 11th, 2019
By Catherine Robertson Souter
In January, several healthcare organizations in Massachusetts took the unusual step of declaring a public health crisis over the rising rates of “burnout” among physicians. In a paper published by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the Harvard Global Health Institute, the Massachusetts Medical Society, and Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association, the group outlines both the concerns and proposed directives for addressing the problem. According to the paper, nearly half of physicians in one survey experienced symptoms of burnout including emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced feelings of professional accomplishment. The paper also pointed to research that burnout may [More]
Tags: psychologist, Mental health, burnout, overburdened, stressed, medical safety incidents, unprofessional behavior, lower patient satisfaction
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March 11th, 2019
By New England Psychologist Staff
First responders to emergencies have a heavy burden to bear and often do not ask for emotional support. Massachusetts recently passed a law specifically to help this population. Senator Michael Moore (D-Second Worcester District) was instrumental in passing legislation for mental health services for first responders. It highlights the mental trauma related to specific events on the job. The bill went into effect on January 16 and applies to firefighters, paramedics, and law enforcement officers. “When you respond to a fire or a baby dies and you’re trying to save them,” he explained. “I don’t know how you wouldn’t take [More]
Tags: PTSD, depression, police officers, legislation, anxiety, substance abuse, mental health support, first responders, emotional support, paramedics, firefighters
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March 10th, 2019
By Phyllis Hanlon
In January, government and local college and university leaders met to discuss the prevalence of stress and anxiety on college campuses. Governor Gina Raimondo called for the summit to help identify opportunities and strategies for collaboration among the counseling centers on Rhode Island’s college campuses, according to Nicole Shaffer-Thomas, director of communications and outreach, RI Office of the Postsecondary Commissioner. The summit produced a number of good ideas, said Vanessa M. Britto, MD, MSc, FACP, executive director of health and wellness at Brown University. Britto, also assistant vice president for campus life and student services said Rhode Island’s size and [More]
Tags: mental health issues, students, HOPE Line, campus counseling, Rhode Island colleges, health care services
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March 10th, 2019
By Alan Bodnar Ph.D.
Some things grab hold of us and never let go. Of all the things that might have had this effect on me, I would have never predicted that one of them would be my first psychology textbook, Introduction to Psychology by Clifford T. Morgan and Richard A. King. I kept the book for years, rarely looking inside and often not even knowing where in the house it was. It was enough to know that it was there somewhere, with me in companionable silence as I built my career and family life on other stories, written in other books, told by [More]
Tags: Introduction to Psychology, psychology textbook, visual cliff experiment, depth perception, building a career, deeper meaning
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March 10th, 2019
By Phyllis Hanlon
The Connecticut Office of the Child Advocate (OCA) published a report citing several areas needing significant improvement after examining conditions at juvenile centers in Bridgeport and Hartford. The centers are operated by the Court Support Services Division (CSSD). The report also included data collected from the Manson Youth Institution for Boys and York Correctional Institute for Girls, which fall under the purview of the Department of Corrections (DOC). The investigation reviewed data from July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2017 and was released in January 2019. Mickey Kramer, MS, RN, associate child advocate, explained that the Connecticut legislature mandated the [More]
Tags: Connecticut, juvenile centers, Connecticut Office of the Child Advocate, mental health evaluations, educational opportunities
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