Recovery Update

A dedicated intervention to help people with severe mental illness stop smoking can double quit rates at six months compared to standard care, research by the University of York has revealed. Led by the University of York's Mental Health and Addiction Research Group, SCIMITAR+ is the largest ever trial to support smoking cessation among people who use mental health services.

From Michael Phelps's candid disclosures about his struggles with depression following the Olympic Games London 2012, to Lindsey Vonn's openness in describing her decade-long battle with the illness, an increasing number of athletes are speaking out about their often hidden struggles with mental health problems. Scientific research currently suggests that mental health disorders affect up to 35 per cent of elite athletes at some stage of their careers. This can range from burnout and substance abuse to eating disorders, depression and anxiety.

Tamara Durbin is responsible for making sure more than 4,300 students across some 5,000 square miles of Colorado's Eastern Plains get mental health care when they need it. She does so with a patchwork of staffers that comes nowhere close to what the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends for student safety.

A bill that would require the state Department of Human Services to warn community mental health centers about upcoming changes to their funding or contracts appeared doomed Tuesday after it stalled in a House committee. Facing questions about some of Senate Bill 519's language, Sen. Kim Hammer, R-Benton, withdrew the legislation from consideration by the House Committee on Public Health, Welfare and Labor during the committee's final meeting of the legislative session. Rep. John Payton, R-Wilburn, asked why the bill would delete language from current law that said funding provided to the centers must be distributed according to state procurement and budgeting laws.

Asian American, Pacific Islander and multiracial college students are more likely than white students to have considered or attempted suicide despite reporting lower rates of psychiatric diagnosis, a new analysis has found. The research, published last month in the journal Psychiatric Services, analyzed survey responses from more than 60,000 college students at 108 schools. It found that while minority students generally reported lower rates of psychiatric diagnoses and symptoms of mental illness, there were notable exceptions.

The Commission has been hard at work improving the paths to PRA Certification! Fast-track pathways now allow those with an existing PRA credential to more easily seek dual-certification, and CPRP and CFRP pathways have been aligned to simplify the process for candidates. In addition, Eligibility Requirements have been adjusted to allow candidates to take their certification exam before meeting the work experience requirements for their selected pathway (those that pass will become official certified upon completion of work experience requirement).