Introducing the Staff-Administered Meal Independence Rating Scale for Use Among Patients With Serious Mental Illnesses.

ABSTRACT: For individuals living with serious mental illnesses (SMIs), inadequate meal preparation skills can hinder the ability to live independently; yet rating scales tailored for this population are lacking. We describe development, item analysis, and initial reliability and validity of the Staff-Administered Meal Independence Rating Scale (SAMIRS). After item development involving expert consultation, two rounds of pilot testing ( n = 188, n = 293) were conducted in inpatient and residential settings (transitional living residences [TLRs] and community residences [CRs]). For initial testing of convergent validity, Pearson correlations with Specific Levels of Functioning (SLOF) scale items were computed. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a single factor; Cronbach's alpha was high (0.98). The mean SAMIRS score varied by setting: CR residents scored higher than those in TLRs or inpatient units. Scores were highly correlated with SLOF items measuring community living skills. Although further study is warranted, the SAMIRS could be a useful tool in rating functional needs pertaining to meal independence among individuals with SMI.

A Group-Based, Six-Lesson Healthy Eating Curriculum for Individuals With Serious Mental Illnesses: Development and Implementation.

As part of an intervention tailored to individuals with serious mental illnesses in residential settings that aimed to increase dietary intake of fresh vegetables and fruits, we developed and implemented a nutrition and cooking curriculum. To develop the curriculum, we assembled a Workgroup that consisted of professionals from multiple fields. The Workgroup held weekly discussions before drafting what would become the Workbook. Residential staff at partnering housing agencies taught the curriculum to residents. The curriculum Workbook contains six lessons, which are organized around two field trips to a mobile farmers market and a grocery store, and four cooking methods. The Workbook also includes instructions on using FreshConnect Checks at mobile farmers markets. The new curriculum distinguishes itself from other nutrition and culinary literacy curricula in that it delivers knowledge about fresh produce and skills in preparing fruits and vegetables in a way that is tailored to individuals with serious mental illnesses.

Associations between Social Adversities and Chronic Medical Conditions in a Statewide Sample of Individuals in Treatment for Mental Illnesses.

Individuals with mental illnesses experience disproportionately high rates of social adversities, chronic medical conditions, and early mortality. We analyzed a large, statewide dataset to explore associations between four social adversities and the presence of one or more, and then two or more, chronic medical conditions among individuals in treatment for mental illnesses in New York State. In Poisson regression models adjusting for multiple covariates (e.g., gender, age, smoking status, alcohol use), the presence of one or more adversities was associated with the presence of at least one medical condition (prevalence ratio (PR) = 1.21) or two or more medical conditions (PR = 1.46), and two or more adversities was associated with at least one medical condition (PR = 1.25) or two or more medical conditions (PR = 1.52) (all significant at p < .0001). Greater attention to primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of chronic medical conditions is needed in mental health treatment settings, especially among those experiencing social adversities.

Associations Between Cumulative Social Adversities and Substance Use Comorbidity in a Statewide Sample of Individuals in Treatment for Mental Illnesses.

ABSTRACT: We sought to investigate associations of cumulative social adversities in four areas (low education, unemployment, homelessness, and criminal/legal involvement) with presence of comorbid alcohol and drug use disorders among individuals in treatment for mental illnesses. Using data from 103,416 adults in mental health treatment, generalized estimating equation modified Poisson models were used to estimate increased risk of having comorbid substance use disorders based on individual and/or cumulative number of social adversities present. Controlling for effects of sex, race/ethnicity, and region (New York City vs . the rest of the State), as well as for the other social adversities, each of four social adversities was associated with presence of substance use comorbidity. Relative to having none of the social adversities, the presence of one, two, three, or four was associated with an increased prevalence ratio (PR) of having substance use comorbidity: 1.44, 2.10, 2.66, and 2.92; all p 's < 0.0001. PRs were greater among female patients, and among Hispanics and those classified as other or multiracial compared with non-Hispanic Whites or non-Hispanic Blacks. Findings indicate substantial associations between four social adversities and presence of substance use comorbidity; the strength of association with the four social adversities is cumulative.

The Social Determinants of Mental Health: A Descriptive Study of State Mental Health Agencies' Priorities.

Social determinants are receiving renewed attention as research demonstrates the effects of social factors on individuals' physical and mental health and elucidates the biological and psychological mechanisms underlying those effects. Through spheres of influence from policy and regulation development to direct service provision, state mental health agencies are in a unique position to lead primary and secondary prevention efforts aimed at addressing social determinants with both client-level and structural-level interventions. A survey of social determinants-related activity was sent to the Medical Directors of the state offices of mental health in all 50 states. The survey results suggest consensus among respondents as to the importance of addressing specific social determinants. However, few state mental health agencies have taken on a comprehensive and intentional approach to addressing social determinants as a unique area of activity. Specific activities are reviewed, and implications for future work is discussed.

Racial Disparity in the Clinical Risk Assessment.

Implicit bias has been shown to impact care in many medical specialties. However, few studies examine its impact on psychiatry. Psychiatrists, especially in the Emergency Room, must assess patients' level of dangerousness when determining an appropriate disposition. For a variety of reasons, clinical understanding of dangerousness may be highly vulnerable to implicit bias. This study aims to determine if there is implicit bias in a psychiatric emergency room setting when determining disposition. Patients were included if their race was recorded as White or Black and if their disposition was either admitted to the inpatient psychiatric unit or discharged to the community (N = 743). Analyses were performed to evaluate associations between race, age, gender and disposition. No statistically significant difference in admission rates between races was found. While this could indicate genuine racial parity, there are many factors that may have masked racial disparity and could warrant further study.

Implementing a Violence Risk Screening Protocol in a Civil Psychiatric Setting: Preliminary Results and Clinical Policy Implications.

Comprehensive violence risk assessment can require substantial time and resources, which may be challenging for an already strapped public mental health system. Herein, we describe a naturalistic study of the Fordham Risk Screening Tool ("FRST"), a violence risk screening instrument designed to quickly identify individuals for whom thorough violence risk assessment would be advisable. All patients admitted to one of three state hospitals during the study period received FRST screening and HCR-20V3 risk assessment. The FRST reliably and accurately identified individuals deemed high risk by the HCR-20V3. The implications of these findings, and the broader clinical policy choices are reviewed.

Diversion evaluations: a specialized forensic examination.

Diversion programs screen justice-involved individuals for the presence of psychiatric disorders, and after negotiations take place with attorneys and treatment providers, these programs link participants with community-based treatment programs in lieu of incarceration. As the number of diversion programs, including mental health courts, continues to rapidly grow, so does the need for "diversion evaluations". Diversion evaluations are a type of forensic mental health assessment (FMHA) conducted to assist the courts in making decisions regarding diversion eligibility. As a result, they should follow the general principles of FMHA and the American Academy of Psychiatry and Law Practice Guideline for Forensic Assessment. Diversion evaluations also require application of specific areas of knowledge and experience, as court-based diversion is a unique, therapeutically focused context that is purposefully non-adversarial. The diversion evaluator is a role that combines objective decision-making with clinical consultation. The purpose of this article is to apply generally accepted forensic report standards to diversion evaluations, with a particular focus on the unique issues of diversion-specific forensic evaluations.

Determining when to conduct a violence risk assessment: Development and initial validation of the Fordham Risk Screening Tool (FRST).

Techniques to assess violence risk are increasingly common, but no systematic approach exists to help clinicians decide which psychiatric patients are most in need of a violence risk assessment. The Fordham Risk Screening Tool (FRST) was designed to fill this void, providing a structured, systematic approach to screening psychiatric patients and determining the need for further, more thorough violence risk assessment. The FRST was administered to a sample of 210 consecutive admissions to the civil psychiatric units of an urban medical center, 159 of whom were subsequently evaluated using the Historical Clinical Risk Management-20, version 3, to determine violence risk. The FRST showed a high degree of sensitivity (93%) in identifying patients subsequently deemed to be at high risk for violence (based on the Case Prioritization risk rating). The FRST also identified all of the patients (100%) rated high in potential for severe violence (based on the Serious Physical Harm Historical Clinical Risk Management-20, version 3, summary risk rating). Sensitivity was more modest when individuals rated as moderate risk were included as the criterion (rather than only those identified as high risk). Specificity was also moderate, screening out approximately half of all participants as not needing further risk assessment. A systematic approach to risk screening is clearly needed to prioritize psychiatric admissions for thorough risk assessment, and the FRST appears to be a potentially valuable step in that process. (PsycINFO Database Record

ACEs and the Possibility of Preventing the Past.

Ashekun and colleagues' study of the association between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and arrests in persons with serious mental illness (SMI) provides more evidence for the importance of addressing the broader needs (beyond narrowly defined symptoms of mental illness) of clients with SMI and criminal legal contact. Furthermore, the article supports the need to appreciate fully the intersection of behavioral health and criminal justice and the intersectionality of mental health and race (i.e., the additive adversities experienced by individuals with SMI who also face race-based inequities). In this commentary, we apply this public health framing of criminal legal involvement among individuals with SMI, expanding on the social adversities, including ACEs, that contribute to adverse health and legal outcomes. We support the relevance of prevention approaches and note areas for further inquiry. In so doing, we aim to reinforce a role for forensic practitioners in addressing these challenges.

Criminal Legal Involvement Among U.S. Adults With Serious Psychological Distress and Differences by Race-Ethnicity.

OBJECTIVE: The authors examined associations between criminal legal involvement (CLI) and serious psychological distress and how these associations differed by racial-ethnic group. METHODS: The authors conducted a retrospective analysis of multiple cross-sections of data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2015-2019) and used multivariable linear probability regression models to assess lifetime CLI and past-year probation, parole, supervised release, or other conditional release in a nationally representative sample of noninstitutionalized U.S. adults, ages ≥18 years (N=214,505), with and without serious psychological distress. RESULTS: Adults with serious psychological distress had higher rates of CLI than adults without such distress (difference of 4.1 percentage points, 95% CI=3.3-4.8, p<0.001). The rate of CLI increased as distress severity increased, from mild (3.2 percentage-point difference, 95% CI=2.6-3.8, p<0.001) to high (7.2 percentage-point difference, 95% CI=6.4-8.0, p<0.001). The risk for CLI among those with serious psychological distress was even greater for Black and Latinx adults than for White adults (1.8 percentage-point difference, 95% CI=0.1-3.5, p<0.05, and 3.2 percentage-point difference, 95% CI=1.3-5.2, p<0.01, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Rates of CLI were higher for adults with serious psychological distress. Efforts are needed to equitably triage individuals with acute mental health needs to timely psychiatric care instead of carceral settings. Collaborative models of care that commingle resources from mental health and law enforcement organizations are needed to prevent unnecessary incarceration of individuals experiencing mental health crises and to increase access to community-based treatment.

Improving Nutrition Security for Individuals With Serious Mental Illnesses: A Partnership of Public and Nonprofit Agencies.

In conjunction with multiple partners (state agencies, nonprofits, a university, and key stakeholders and content experts), the authors are implementing and evaluating an intervention intended to enable individuals with serious mental illnesses living in community residences (i.e., group homes) and supportive housing apartments to-with support from residential staff-access, purchase, prepare, and enjoy healthy, local produce. The three-component intervention makes fresh produce more accessible; improves its affordability; and conveys knowledge and skills related to purchasing, preparing, and eating healthy foods, especially vegetables. The intervention is being evaluated in preparation for possible larger-scale implementation and potential dissemination to other populations experiencing nutrition insecurity.

Criminal Legal Involvement: A Cause and Consequence of Social Determinants of Health.

The overrepresentation of people of color and individuals with serious mental illnesses across all levels of the criminal legal system results from the effects of social and economic forces, including social determinants of health and behavioral health, as well as systemic racism. Conversely, criminal legal contact creates and exacerbates these social stresses, with associated consequences to general medical and behavioral health. In this column, the authors explore the relationship between social determinants of health and criminal legal contact through the lens of recent literature on criminal recidivism and describe the ways in which criminal legal contact is itself a social determinant that drives mental health outcomes.

Prevalence and Correlates of Four Social Determinants in a Statewide Survey of Licensed Mental Health Services.

OBJECTIVE: This analysis examined the distribution of four social determinants of health among recipients of state-licensed mental health services and analyzed relationships between determinants and individuals' clinical and demographic characteristics. METHODS: With data from the New York State Office of Mental Health 2017 Patient Characteristics Survey (N=103,416), prevalences of four social determinants (education, employment, housing, and criminal legal involvement) among mental health service recipients were described. Results were stratified to explore differences by diagnosis, gender, race and ethnicity, and region of residence. RESULTS: High proportions had low education (20.9%), unemployment (79.1%), homelessness (8.2%), and criminal legal involvement (12.2%), surpassing statistics for the general state population. Prevalences of alcohol-related, drug-related, and psychotic disorders were higher among these groups than were prevalences of other diagnoses. People of color and male recipients were overrepresented among those with adverse social determinants. CONCLUSIONS: Results highlight the magnitude of social adversity among those receiving mental health services, as well as potential inequities.

Targeting criminal recidivism in mentally ill offenders: structured clinical approaches.

Decreasing criminal recidivism in justice-involved individuals with mental illness, is among the most consistently desired outcomes by programs, policy makers and funding agencies. Evidence-based practices with track records of effectiveness in treating mental illness and co-occurring substance abuse, while important clinically, do not necessarily address criminal recidivism. Addressing recidivism, therefore, may require a more targeted criminal justice focus. In this paper, we describe recent challenges to decriminalization approaches and review factors associated with recurrent criminal behavior. In particular, we focus on structured clinical interventions which were created or adapted to target the thoughts and behaviors associated with criminal justice contact.

Social Determinants of Mental Health As Mediators and Moderators of the Mental Health Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Contracting COVID-19, being exposed to it, or being affected by societal containment measures can have consequences that are themselves social determinants of health. Preexisting social determinants of health also drive the disproportionately high prevalence of COVID-19 infection and deaths among minority, marginalized, and other vulnerable populations. Thus, the social determinants of mental health act as both mediators and moderators of the pandemic's impacts, and like all social determinants, the effects of the pandemic are underpinned by public policies and social norms. The major economic impacts of containment measures have had cascading effects that will affect mental health for years to come.

Violence risk assessment for young adults receiving treatment for early psychosis.

AIM: Although the absolute risk of violence is small for individuals with mental illnesses, a specific subgroup of individuals who appear to be at increased risk for violence includes young people experiencing emerging or early psychosis. Prior research has identified risk factors for violence in this population, though no prior studies using a formal risk assessment tool have been identified. This study used the Historical Clinical Risk Management-20, version 3 (HCR-20) to identify risk of future violence among a sample of young adults with early psychosis and relevant predictors of risk unique to this population. METHODS: The HCR-20 was administered to a sample of young adults with early psychosis (N = 53) enrolled at one OnTrackNY site, part of a statewide program providing early intervention services to young adults presenting with a first episode of non-affective psychosis. A Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was conducted to explore the relative importance of the HCR-20 items for this population. RESULTS: The average age of participants was 21.9 years (SD 3.6 years) and most were male (69.8%, n = 37). Most patients were assessed to be at low risk for future violence based on the Case Prioritization summary risk rating (67.9%, n = 36). The CFA identified 4 items that were not of relative predictive value in identifying the risk of violence in this sample: history of substance use (item H5), history of major mental disorder (item H6), living situation (item R2), and personal support (item R3). CONCLUSION: This study presents a formal approach to assessing violence risk in a population at elevated risk of violence, demonstrates the feasibility of using a standardized risk assessment tool in early intervention services, and identifies factors of particular importance associated with predicting violence in this population. Future research should implement violence risk assessment with a structured tool such as the HCR-20 and assess its accuracy in predicting future violent behavior in this setting.

An exploration of criminal thinking styles among civil psychiatric patients.

BACKGROUND: Several studies have found a relationship between psychiatric illness and criminal behaviour. Despite this, few studies have examined the presence of criminal thinking among civil psychiatric patients. AIMS: The aim of this study is to explore the patterns and correlates of criminal thinking, using the Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking Styles (PICTS), in a sample of civil psychiatric patients. METHOD: The PICTS (Layperson Edition) and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (Anchored Version; BPRS) were administered to 76 civil psychiatric patients. PICTS scores were compared with those of offenders from a previously published study. Bivariate tests were conducted between selected PICTS scales, BPRS factors, demographic and criminal history variables. Stepwise multiple regressions were performed to assess those variables that predicted the general criminal thinking, proactive and reactive composite scales of the PICTS. RESULTS: Independent samples t-tests revealed that five PICTS thinking styles were significantly higher in the psychiatric sample compared with the comparison sample of criminal offenders. Bivariate correlations revealed that the PICTS proactive composite scale was significantly related to and predicted by substance abuse and arrest history. CONCLUSIONS/CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Thinking styles which are typically associated with criminality were found in this sample of civil psychiatric patients. Cognitive remediation strategies targeting these may help to prevent criminal activity in psychiatric patients.

Recent violence and legal involvement among young adults with early psychosis enrolled in Coordinated Specialty Care.

AIM: Individuals with serious mental illnesses have a small increased risk of engaging in violence or legal involvement compared to the general population. This seems to be particularly true for young adults experiencing early stages of psychosis. This study analysed the prevalence of and risk factors for reports of violence and legal involvement in a sample of young adults receiving Coordinated Specialty Care for early non-affective psychosis. METHODS: A total of 373 young adults (ages 16-30) within 2 years of the onset of non-affective psychosis were enrolled in 10 Coordinated Specialty Care sites in New York State from October 2013 to August 2016. Baseline violent ideation or behaviour and legal involvement was described and predictors identified. RESULTS: Approximately one-quarter of individuals had either recent violent ideation or behaviour at baseline (n = 90, 24.6%); nearly one-tenth of the sample reported recent legal involvement (n = 33, 9.0%). Individuals with violent ideation or behaviour had lower levels of education and were less likely to be working. Those with recent legal involvement were more likely to be male and more likely to have substance use (alcohol, cannabis and other drugs). CONCLUSIONS: The overall rate of recent violent ideation or behaviour is similar to other studies; up to one-third of individuals experiencing a first-episode of psychosis (FEP) report violence. Recent legal involvement was strongly associated with substance use. This study presents insight into violence and legal involvement among individuals with FEP and indicates the need for further research.

Structured Assessment of Correctional Adaptation (SACA): a measure of the impact of incarceration on the mentally ill in a therapeutic setting.

Clinicians have observed that psychiatric patients with correctional histories evidence attitudes and behaviors that seem adaptive in penal environments but are maladaptive in mental health settings. This study sought to assess the reliability and concurrent validity of a rating scale designed to measure correctional adaptation using a sample of 64 patients from a state psychiatric hospital. Scale ratings were obtained through structured interviews, whereas predictor variables were gleaned from chart review and self-report. The scale demonstrated good interrater reliability (ICC = .83) and acceptable internal consistency (alpha= .67). Of the variables evaluated, two were significantly correlated with Structured Assessment of Correctional Adaptation (SACA) total scores, total months sentenced to prison or jail (r = .26), and frequency of disciplinary tickets while in prison or jail (r = .31). Stepwise regression analyses revealed only the latter variable significantly predicted SACA score (R = .31), F(1, 58) = 6.27, p < .05. Clinical implications of these findings, the scale, and the construct of correctional adaptation are discussed.