Current Issues within the Perinatal Mental Health Care System in Aichi Prefecture, Japan: A Cross-Sectional Questionnaire Survey

Mental illnesses commonly occur in the reproductive age. This study aimed to identify the issues that exist within the perinatal mental health care system. A cross-sectional survey was conducted in Aichi Prefecture in central Japan. Questionnaires on the situation between 2016 and 2018 were mailed to the head physicians of 128 maternity care units, 21 neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), and 40 assisted reproductive technology (ART) units. A total of 82 (52.6 per 100,000 births) women were admitted to mental health care units during the perinatal period, and 158 (1.0 per 1000 births) neonates born to mothers with mental illness were admitted to NICUs. Approximately 40% of patients were hospitalized in psychiatric hospitals without maternity care units. Eighty-four (71.1%) and 76 (64.4%) maternity care units did not have psychiatrists or social workers, respectively. Moreover, 20–35% of the head physicians in private clinics, general hospitals, and ART units endorsed the discontinuation of psychotropic drug use during pregnancy. However, the corresponding figures were only 5% among those in maternal-fetal centers. Resources for perinatal mental illness might be limited. Perspectives on psychotropic drug use differed based on the type of facilities where the doctors were working.

From Mental Health Industry to Humane Care. Suggestions for an Alternative Systemic Approach to Distress

The article proposes a rough outline of an alternative systemic approach to mental health issues and of a more humane mental health care system. It suggests focusing on understanding mental distress as stemming from problems in living, using medications as agents facilitating psychotherapy, or as a last resort and short-term help, according to the principles of harm reduction. It argues that understanding drugs as psychoactive substances and studying the subjective effects they produce could lead to better utilization of medications and improvements in terms of conceptualizing and assessing treatment effects. Qualitative research could be particularly useful in that regard. It also advocates a radical departure from current diagnostic systems and proposes a synthesis of already existing alternatives to be used for both research and clinical purposes. Accordingly, a general idea for an alternative mental health care system, based on a combination of Open Dialogue Approach, Soteria houses, individual and group psychotherapy, cautious prescribing, services helping with drug discontinuation, peer-led services and social support is presented. The proposition could be seen as a first step towards developing a systemic alternative that could replace the currently dominating approach instead of focusing on implementing partial solutions that can be co-opted by the current one.

#SelfHelp : A Supplementary paper for the film #SelfHelp

The film #SelfHelp critically examines Toronto’s mental health care system, it’s flaws and the different reasons why people resort to other options. After facing ongoing challenges, three young women decided to take matters into their own hands. Through the use of social media, starting community workshops and dedication to knowledge-sharing, these women begin to not only heal themselves, but others as well.

#SelfHelp : A Supplementary paper for the film #SelfHelp

The film #SelfHelp critically examines Toronto’s mental health care system, it’s flaws and the different reasons why people resort to other options. After facing ongoing challenges, three young women decided to take matters into their own hands. Through the use of social media, starting community workshops and dedication to knowledge-sharing, these women begin to not only heal themselves, but others as well.

Psychiatric readmission rates in a multi-level mental health care system – a descriptive population cohort study

Background Readmission rates are frequently used as a quality indicator for health care, yet their validity for evaluating quality is unclear. Published research on variables affecting readmission to psychiatric hospitals have been inconsistent. The Norwegian specialist mental health care system is characterized by a multi-level structure; hospitals providing specialized -largely unplanned care and district psychiatric centers (DPCs) providing generalized -more often planned care. In certain service systems, readmission may be an integral part of individual patients’ treatment plan. The aim of the present study was to describe and examine the task division in a multi-level health care system. This we did through describing differences in patient population (age, sex, diagnosis, substance abuse comorbidity and length of stay) and admissions types (unplanned vs. planned) treated at different levels (hospital, DPC or both), and by examining whether readmission risk differ according to type and place of treatment of index-admission and travel-time to nearest hospital and DPC. Methods In this population-based cohort study using administrative data we included all individuals aged 18 and older who were discharged from psychiatric inpatient care with an ICD-10 diagnosis F2-F6 (“functional mental disorders”) in 2012. Selecting each individual’s first discharge during 2012 as index gave N = 16,185 for analyses following exclusions. Analysis of readmission risk were done using Kaplan-Maier failure curves. Results Overall, 15.1 and 47.7% of patients were readmitted within 30 and 365 days, respectively. Unplanned admission patients were more likely to be readmitted within 30 days than planned patients. Those transferred between hospital and DPC during index admission were more likely to be readmitted within 365 days, and to experience planned readmission. Patients with short travel time were more likely to have unplanned readmission, while patients with long travel time were more likely to have planned readmission. Conclusions DPCs and hospitals fill different purposes in the Norwegian health care system, which is reflected in different patient populations. Differences in short term readmission rates between hospitals and DPCs disappeared when type of admission (unplanned/planned) was considered. The results stress the importance of addressing differences in organisation and task distribution when comparing readmission rates between mental health systems.

COVID-19 and Depression from the Nigerian Perspective; A Mini Review

Context: The outbreak of the highly infectious COVID-19 has led to a global public health and economic crisis, especially in developing countries. Due to the global burden and spread and the high mortality rate of the virus, as well as an inadequate mental health care system in Nigeria, inhabitants often experience fear, depression, and anxiety that, if left unaddressed, may lead to long-term consequences. Although depression was a concerning issue in Nigeria before COVID-19, the pandemic has caused a surge in depression cases. This review highlighted the possible causes of depression among Nigerians during the COVID-19 pandemic and identified potential mitigating interventions to prevent depression. Evidence Acquisition: We searched PubMed for the articles published from January 2019 to September 2020 using the terms of “depression”, “COVID-19”, and “Nigeria”. The articles resulting from these searches and the relevant references cited in those articles were reviewed. Results: Nigerians are likely to fall into depression due to the challenges and limitations affecting the economy and development of Nigeria. Conclusions: During the COVID-19 struggle, providing sound mental health services for individuals is imperative to maintain nations’ mental health for a more rapid recovery across various measures of societal well-being post-COVID-19.

Overcoming the Challenges of the Mental Health Care System in United States in the Aftermath of COVID-19

Study Objective(s)The impact of pandemic events such as the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic led to an economic crisis worldwide as well as an increase of mental health problems. In the United States, the gaps in the mental health care system struggle to meet the needs of vulnerable populations and have caused a major public health problem. We aim to increase the awareness of health care professionals, psychiatrists, and policy makers regarding failures and gaps in the mental health care system and suggest new ideas to overcome the growing burden of mental disorders.MethodWe utilized data from PubMed, Science Direct, Cochrane, Embase and Clinicaltrials.gov databases to analyze available information on the US mental health system. We included any relevant articles addressing the prevalence of mental diseases, disparities and the gaps for an accessible and affordable mental health system, as well as the psychological impact of COVID-19 pandemic.Keywords‘COVID-19’, ‘Coronavirus’, ‘SARS-CoV-2’, ‘mental health’, ‘Health, Mental’ were used.ResultsFollowing scoping review of several studies we noticed that while prevalence of mental health problems in the US varies between states and socio-demographic groups, it is among the top 10 causes of premature death and disability in adults. We noticed that mental health problems are currently one of the costliest public health issues in the healthcare system. Tracking Poll from one of the studies in our scoping review suggested that financial inequities are magnified by the COVID-19 pandemic and that psychological distress was substantially larger among respondents with lower income (33%), Hispanics (28%) and Blacks (26%). Furthermore, in another poll 62% of US population are shown to be anxious due to COVID-19. We observed that the prevalence of reported symptoms of psychological distress among US adults increased when compared to 2018. Common barriers such as failure of accessibility, insufficient funding, insufficient psychiatric beds, limited insurance access and economic burden, clinician shortages, fragmented care, insufficient mental health care policies and insufficient education and awareness about mental illness become more prominent during the COVID-19 pandemic era.ConclusionsThe impact of COVID-19 on mental health is alarming, which affects public health and has made the health care system more vulnerable. Pandemic events not only cause acute negative impact, they also result in long-lasting health problems, isolation and stigma. The COVID-19 pandemic threatens the mental health of the population and its long-term consequences can lead to a secondary pandemic. The outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health emphasize the need for policies and strategies to support and strengthen a concerted effort to address its burden on the US mental health care system. In addition, it magnifies the need for high quality and well-funded research for future pandemics.