Lisa Dixon, MD, MPH

Can defendants use the insanity defense to avoid being held responsible for behavior that was due to their mental illness if they may have self-induced a mental state by not taking prescribed medication? This column examines the complex issues of noncompliance and the insanity defense. bit.ly/3KeHR1f

After attending CHATogether webinars, which are developed with community partnerships and use creative storytelling and skits about mental health topics specific to Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, participants had more positive sentiments about having mental health conversations. bit.ly/4mAYhi3

The author introduces the waiting room effect, wherein interventions such as mental health courts may in some cases unintentionally reinforce the role of jails as places to hold individuals who are awaiting access to scarce and overburdened community resources for behavioral health treatment. bit.ly/42D7wqE

The authors compared the average annual prevalence of suicidal ideation and behaviors among youths with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs). Findings underscore the importance of developing suicide risk identification and management strategies tailored to the needs of youths with IDDs. bit.ly/3Vyh1nf

Our latest issue kicks off with a look at a study assessing the benefits and risks of increases in prescribing ADHD medications. bit.ly/46lAv4E

An early-career researcher and faculty member reflects on the healing and traumatizing aspects of her emergency room visit for a psychotic episode during the COVID-19 pandemic. bit.ly/48aaqqK

This systematic review identified several school-based trauma interventions that effectively reduced posttraumatic stress and other mental health symptoms among students. Cognitive-behavioral and creative-expressive techniques were common treatment elements across most effective interventions. bit.ly/48dx3dI

The number of specialized inpatient psychiatric units for youths with autism or intellectual disability has more than doubled since 2011. These units use a different model of care, use larger multidisciplinary care teams, and have longer lengths of stay than typical inpatient psychiatric units. bit.ly/3WijClo

Clozapine is an effective but underutilized treatment option. An examination of data from a 2023 national survey found limited clozapine availability among U.S. mental health facilities. Targeted policies and educational initiatives are needed to close gaps in clozapine access. bit.ly/4pNhvUt

Our October "Taking Issue" feature highlights an article attempting to fill a knowledge gap regarding civil commitment rates in the United States stemming from the fact that no national database or consistent framework exists for tracking involuntary inpatient civil commitments. bit.ly/486O757

Equity-centered trauma-informed education (ECTIE), a model that evolved from trauma-informed care, recognizes that schools can either protect or inflict harm on minoritized students. Policy interventions based on ECTIE principles have the potential to improve mental health outcomes for children. bit.ly/4h7dxSq

A brief overview of general systems theory, including its impact on the development of community psychiatry and its relevance to the current public mental health care sector, highlights a 1975 keynote address on the topic by Judd Marmor, the 104th president of @APApsychiatric bit.ly/46Smiwu

This scoping review explores how 49 integrated and transdiagnostic youth mental health service models from 13 countries assess the mental health needs of youths, operationalize needs to guide care delivery, and identify youths with severe needs and direct them to appropriate care. bit.ly/3L3nYKY

A study of Veterans Affairs (VA) and other hospitals found that veterans experiencing homelessness had decreased VA hospitalizations and increased non-VA hospitalizations covered by VA or by Medicaid. Non-VA hospitalizations were associated with a higher probability of mortality and readmission. bit.ly/3WhT7g5

In its first 5 years, the Indiana Behavioral Health Access Program for Youth (Be Happy) provided more than 3,000 consultations, increasing providers’ confidence in managing conditions such as anxiety, ADHD, and depression. bit.ly/4qjVn46

Medicaid-insured adults were more than twice as likely to receive newly dispensed psychotropic medications prescribed by psychiatric–mental health nurse practitioners than by psychiatrists after (vs. before) Maryland’s Nurse Practitioner Full Practice Authority Act of 2015. bit.ly/4ncXnbT

During the COVID-19 pandemic, non-Hispanic Black youths experienced reduced access to mental health services because agencies serving them adopted telehealth less frequently. Structural inequities, rather than individual factors, were key drivers of these racial-ethnic disparities in care. bit.ly/3LdC6By

For strategies implemented at a state hospital to address significant increases in pretrial forensic admissions of individuals ordered for competency restoration, the forensic coordinator is essential for improving the flow of admissions and discharges.

In an evaluation of two mobile health implementation strategies—external and internal facilitation—to support a smartphone intervention for schizophrenia in community mental health settings, practitioners found both strategies to be effective, and patients were satisfied with the intervention. bit.ly/3LgA2IS

Compared with psychiatric emergency department (PED) patients not placed under arrest, newly arrested patients were more likely to be younger, Black, or male; less likely to receive most psychiatric diagnoses; and, for those with schizophrenia, more likely to have longer lengths of stay in the PED. bit.ly/3X2dU7A