January 1st, 2018
By Catherine Robertson Souter
New Hampshire needs help. That is the message put out by US Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) in a recent release decrying the Trump administration’s decision not to increase funding for the state’s battle against the opioid crisis. While the problem has reached every state in the country, New Hampshire has been especially hard hit. With the second highest death rate from opioid overdose in the nation, New Hampshire has seen deaths more than double since 2011. “We are second in the nation per capita from opioid related deaths, but actually number one for fentanyl related deaths,” [More]
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January 1st, 2018
By Phyllis Hanlon
Clinical & Support Options (CSO), a comprehensive behavioral health agency that serves residents in western Massachusetts, recently received a federal grant that provides $450,000 over a three-year period. The grant is one of three given by the Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crime and is designated to support the Rural Access Project. According to CEO Karin Jeffers, LMHC, the agency will use the funds to expand its Center for Community Resilience after Trauma (CCRT) program. “This program assists victims of crime ranging from drunk driving and domestic violence to home break-ins and sexual abuse. We offer a unique [More]
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January 1st, 2018
By Pamela Berard
The number of Massachusetts patients seeking Emergency Department (ED) care for behavioral health conditions increased, as did the proportion of those patients who boarded and the length of boarding, according to data from 2011-2015 that was recently released by the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission (HPC). The data from HPC – an independent state agency that develops policy to reduce health care cost growth and improve the quality of patient care – indicated that the number of patients seeking ED care for behavioral health conditions increased 13 percent from 2011-2015, and the number of patients who boarded (i.e., patients who spend [More]
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January 1st, 2018
By Susan Gonsalves
The future of the country is the largest source of stress according to a report from the American Psychological Association. The APA released the results of its annual “Stress in America,” survey in November, with the country’s future topping the results at 63 percent, followed close behind by money at 62 percent and work at 61 percent. The 2017 “Stress in America” survey was conducted online by Harris Poll between Aug. 2 and Aug 31, 2017, among 3,440 adults age 18+ in the United States. Broken down, 1,376 men, 2,047 women, 1,088 white, 810 Hispanic, 808 Black, 506 Asian and [More]
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January 1st, 2018
By Eileen Weber
Suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in this country. According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, men die from suicide three and half times more than women while women attempt suicide two and half more times than men. Of the more than 40,000 people who commit suicide every year, less than 10 percent of them end their lives by other means, including jumping off high structures. No doubt you’ve heard of the more than 1,600 people who have jumped to their deaths from the Golden Gate Bridge in California, which now has netting to catch those who [More]
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January 1st, 2018
By Catherine Robertson Souter
The heightened awareness around issues of sexual abuse and trauma in the public forum helps shine a light on the prevalence of the issue in all age groups. As the country goes through what feels like a domino effect of sexual harassment and abuse allegations, public awareness helps victims to come forward for treatment and reduces the stigma surrounding the trauma, leading to better outcomes. According to Antoinette Harrington, Psy.D, a psychologist who specializes in working with children and adolescent victims, the increased attention also allows families to better understand and identify trauma reactions in children and know when to [More]
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January 1st, 2018
By James K Luiselli EdD ABPP BCBA-D
“Interviewing Children: The Science of Conversation in Forensic Contexts By Debra Ann Poole American Psychological Association Washington, D.C., 2016 Book on interviewing is `top of the line’ Reviewed by James K. Luiselli, Ed.D., ABPP, BCBA-D This book is an in-depth examination of forensic interviewing with children, written by a psychologist who specializes in eyewitness testimony and conversational techniques. Her thesis is that “adults usual style of conversing with children is inappropriate in forensic contexts,” causing child informants to speculate, misinterpret questions and answer falsely. The book describes forensic interviewing as a problem solving approach “that will decide which of several [More]
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January 1st, 2018
By Kerry Morrison, Psy.D
“Emotion-Focused Therapy For Generalized Anxiety” By Jeanne C. Watson & Leslie S. Greenberg American Psychological Association Washington, D.C., 2017 Book provides novel approach to treating GAD Reviewed by Kerry Morrison, Psy.D. According to Watson & Greenberg, Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is a serious disorder that impairs functioning and quality of life for between 1.9-5.4 percent of the population, primarily women. It is the most common of anxiety disorders, yet is often under-recognized with only one-third of those afflicted getting treatment. GAD can be treatment-resistant with only 50 percent responding to short-term therapy. The remaining clients do not respond or relapse. [More]
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January 1st, 2018
By Alan Bodnar Ph.D.
Music is all around us but it took a holiday meal at a memory care center to remind me of its power to restore us to ourselves even if only for as long as we pay attention. My wife and I were there for a special dinner served to the strains of familiar tunes like “She’ll be Comin’ Round the Mountain” and “Yankee Doodle Dandy.” Accustomed as I had become, even at the center, to crooners singing American standards from the big band era and younger vocalists doing easy listening favorites, I made a face somewhere in the middle of [More]
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December 1st, 2017
By Phyllis Hanlon
Recently, print, broadcast and social media sites have been reporting sexual abuse, harassment, and misbehavior allegations on a daily basis. While this news has focused on the entertainment industry and corporate America, such behavior also occurs in the workplace, at home and in public venues. Carlos A. Cuevas, Ph.D., associate professor, co-director, Violence & Justice Research Laboratory, School of Criminology & Criminal Justice at Northeastern University, defines sexual abuse as “any kind of unwanted or forced sexual behavior on a person” that might include touching, fondling or rape. “Harassment doesn’t necessarily differ from sexual abuse, but is usually connected to [More]
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