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RESEARCH WEEKLY: April Research Roundup
By Elizabeth Sinclair Hancq
(April 24, 2023) Research Roundup is a monthly public service of the Office of Research and Public Affairs. Each edition describes a striking new data point about severe mental illness and summarizes recently published research reports or developments.
DATAPOINT OF THE MONTH
Half of homeless individuals with serious mental illness are unsheltered
According to data from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, 46.7% of individuals with serious mental illness experiencing homelessness are unsheltered, meaning they’re sleeping in encampments, under underpasses, in their vehicles, or in other locations not meant for human habitation. The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the number of people who are unsheltered.
RESEARCH OF THE MONTH
People with serious mental illness prefer nonpolice crisis response
Individuals with serious mental illness prefer a nonpolice response to a mental health crisis, according to new research published in “Psychiatric Services.” Family members and friends agreed, describing the need for a calm environment and empathy during a mental health crisis with their loved one. These results were found from interviews with 50 individuals with serious mental illness who had a history of an arrest and have been involved in a larger study regarding a police-mental health linkage system in Georgia. Eighteen of their family members and friends were also interviewed. Of four potential options, individuals with serious mental illness and their families selected a crisis response from a law enforcement crisis intervention team as their least preferred response. However, the interviewed individuals discussed concerns about safety with a nonpolice response, recognizing the complexity of appropriate policies in responding to mental health crises of individuals with serious mental illness.
Pope, L. G., et al. (April 2023). Crisis response model preferences of mental health care clients with prior misdemeanor arrests and of their family and friends. Psychiatric Services.
Insomnia contributes to suicidal ideation in individuals with schizophrenia
People with schizophrenia often have difficulties with sleep, including bouts of insomnia. These sleep disturbances contribute to suicidal ideation in individuals with schizophrenia, according to new research published in “Schizophrenia Bulletin.”
Researchers of the study examined 403 individuals with a first-episode psychosis who were involved in a larger study, Recovery After an Initial Schizophrenia Episode, or RAISE trial. More than half of individuals studied had sleep problems, according to the results. After controlling for other potential factors, the researchers found a dose-dependent relationship between sleep problems and suicidal ideation, meaning the more sleep problems an individual with schizophrenia reported, the higher their risk for experiencing suicidal ideation. The authors suggested that treatment for sleep disturbances in individuals with schizophrenia is important for suicide prevention.
Ayers, N. (2023, April). Sleep problems, suicidal ideation, and psychopathology in first-episode psychosis. Schizophrenia Bulletin.
Risk of death from COVID-19
Previous research has shown that people with severe mental illness are at increased risk of death from COVID-19. New research suggests this result remains true over time and after multiple waves of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Using data from a national hospital discharge database in France, researchers assessed the mortality of individuals who had been discharged from a hospital with COVID-19 from February 2020 to August 2021. People with mental illness had a higher mortality risk and were less likely to receive intensive treatment such as oxygenation or respiratory support, according to the results. Additionally, people with mental illness had a significantly higher risk of mortality during surges in hospitals of COVID-19, whereas people without mental illness had no excess mortality risk during these peak times.
“COVID-19 control and healthcare policies need to explicitly recognize people living with mental disorders as a vulnerable group and take this into account in all actions related to public awareness, protection, early detection, and access to treatment,” the authors wrote. “These considerations should also extend to financing of care since people living with mental disorders are more likely to face adverse socioeconomic circumstances and have less access to health insurance, especially in countries where healthcare is not financed by the government.”
Saxena, S. (2023, April). Mental disorders and COVID-19 deaths: Clinical, public health, and human rights implications. PLOS Medicine.
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