The Weekly Spark often includes information that may interest military members and members of

and their families. This newsletter occasionally also suggests passing a copy along to a friend.

Accordingly, I try to comply. Please consider doing the same. (mike moldeven, private citizen)

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The Weekly Spark – Week of December 9, 2011

Research Summaries | National News | State and Tribal News | International News | Funding Opportunities

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

SAMHSA newsletter focuses on behavioral health care for military members and their families
The latest issue of SAMHSA News, Care for Military Members and Their Families: Close-up on Military Behavioral Health, provides a review of SAMHSA resources, programs and initiatives to assist and inform civilian behavioral health providers. SAMHSA Administrator Pamela Hyde discusses the Military Families Initiative, one of eight strategic initiatives outlined in Leading Change: A plan for SAMHSA’s Roles and Actions 2011-2014. Improving military families’ access to high quality, trauma-informed care by service providers familiar with the culture of the military is key to this initiative. Other articles discuss how civilian providers can gain a better understanding of the warrior’s way of life through TRICARE certification and provide resource lists for military members and civilian providers.

For more information http://www.samhsa.gov/samhsaNewsletter/Volume_19_Number_3/fall-2011-volume-19-number-3.pdf

Real Warriors Campaign launches “Suicide Prevention Training for Line Leaders” webpage
The Real Warriors Campaign now includes a webpage on suicide prevention training for military supervisors and unit leaders. The webpage describes how leaders can establish a supportive command atmosphere by fostering a culture of engagement with subordinates and peers that encourages service members to ask for help and seek treatment when needed. The webpage also explains how to identify those at risk for suicide and how to respond. The Real Warriors Campaign is an initiative of the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) to build resilience, facilitate recovery and support reintegration of returning service members, veterans and their families.

For more information http://www.realwarriors.net/active/leaders/suicideprevention.php

SAMHSA seeks input for the 2012 SAMHSA Advisory and SAMHSA In Brief publications
In addition to ideas for publication topics, SAMHSA is looking for input on the type of information to include in these publications. This might include groundbreaking studies, promising practices, and benefits or limitations of a particular treatment modality. SAMHSA Advisory publications provide behavioral health professionals with timely information on a broad range of emerging or hot topics in the behavioral health field. SAMHSA In Brief publications are designed to inform and educate professionals whose work is affected by issues related to substance use or mental health disorders, or who provide services for people who have these disorders.

For more information http://blog.samhsa.gov/2011/12/05/samhsa-seeks-public-input-on-publication-topics-for-the-2012-in-brief-and-advisory-series/

RESEARCH SUMMARIES:

No Research Summaries Found for the week of December 9, 2011

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NEWS HEADLINES:

National News | State and Tribal News | International News

National News

Mental disorders common, persistent in U.S. adolescents , Medscape, Dec. 2, 2011
According to a new study using data from the National Comorbidity Survey-Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A), mental health disorders are “highly prevalent and persistent” among adolescents in the United States. The survey results “provide a strong rationale for continuing to prioritize research to understand the development of major mental disorders during the first two decades of life,” said lead study author Ronald C. Kessler of the Department of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School. The NCS-A assesses a broad range of disorders listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) in a nationally representative sample of more than 10,000 adolescents ages 13 to 17. According to Kessler, it was designed to fill a gap in epidemiological data on the prevalence and correlates of adolescent mental disorders in the United States. Survey researchers measured the prevalence of DSM-IV disorders for three time periods: the last year; the last 30 days; and lifetime. The prevalence estimate for any DSM-IV disorder was 40.3 percent during the last 12 months and 23.4 percent during the last 30 days. Anxiety disorders were the most common class of disorder, followed by behavior, mood, and substance disorders.
Link to Article

Spark Extra! Read the full text of “Prevalence, Persistence, and Sociodemographic Correlates of DSM-IV Disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication Adolescent Supplement” http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/archgenpsychiatry.2011.160

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State and Tribal News

Missouri : Schools take a new approach to handling suicides, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Dec. 7, 2011
With help from a training program offered by the University of Missouri-Columbia, Missouri school districts are now offering a more unified approach to suicide prevention and response. The training program, which is called the Mental Health Leadership Academy, educates teachers about suicide so they can bring the knowledge back to their school districts and set up systems to identify students at risk for suicide. “It used to be we didn’t talk about suicide, and we don’t want to believe that stuff happens,” said Julie Harrison, coordinator of guidance and counseling for the Parkway School District. “We’re starting to talk about it now.” When a suicide occurs at one of the schools in the district, teachers now take several steps to help fellow students cope, including: identifying the student’s closest friends and reaching out to them; asking these close friends about anyone else who should be informed about the death; following the deceased student’s schedule throughout the day and checking in with each class; and checking the halls and bathrooms throughout the day to make sure students aren’t upset and alone. After receiving the training, Harrison and other counselors in the Parkway district also worked with local agencies to develop a plan to present workshops about suicide and mental health issues to students in grades 7 to 12.
Link to Article

Spark Extra! Learn more about the Mental Health Leadership Academy http://education.missouri.edu/orgs/mper/mental-health-leadership-academy/index.php

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International News

Ireland: Suicide prevention for young men – official findings launched, HSC Public Health Agency, Dec. 1, 2011
A new report, Providing Meaningful Care: Using the Experiences of Young Suicidal Men to Inform Mental Health Care Services, adds to the published research supporting Northern Ireland’s Suicide Prevention Strategy. “The importance of using research findings to tailor support services to the need of vulnerable people cannot be overemphasized,” said Eddie Rooney, Chief Executive of Public Health Agency, a regional organization with a mandate to protect and improve health and social well-being. “This report will help us to provide more targeted support and training, e.g. in schools, clubs, at key access points in the community.” Other research conducted in support of the strategy include an inquiry into suicide and homicide, as well as research on the use of help-seeking pathways, recognition of suicidal patients by general practitioners, and bereavement coping strategies.
Link to Article

Spark Extra! Read Providing Meaningful Care: Using the Experiences of Young Suicidal Men to Inform Mental Health Care Services: Short Report http://www.publichealth.hscni.net/sites/default/files/ProvidingMeaningfulCareSHORT_REPORT.pdf