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An Innovative Intervention to Help Asian American Families Cope with Racism and Related Mental Health Difficulties is funded by a Grand Challenges Individual Project Grant from the University of Maryland. This eight-session, culturally sensitive intervention helps Asian American families talk about racism, discrimination and associated mental health issues and learn positive parenting practices and youth coping strategies

The intervention is one of 11 projects involving College of Education faculty that were funded by Grand Challenges Grants earlier this year. In all, the university awarded more than $30 million to 50 projects addressing pressing societal issues, including educational disparities, social injustice, climate change, global health and threats to democracy. The Grand Challenges Grants Program is the largest and most comprehensive program of its type in the university’s history.

Cixin Wang, associate professor, is the principal investigator. Wang explains how racism affects the mental health and well-being of both Asian American parents and youth and how her intervention will help.

Read more at Education.UMD.edu.

Physiological changes recorded by a wearable biosensor and analyzed through a machine-learning approach can help predict aggressive behavior before it occurs in young psychiatric facility patients with autism, new research shows.

The study published in JAMA Network Open last month by Northeastern University researchers adds to research examining whether imminent aggressive behavior among autistic inpatients can be determined via a wearable biosensor and machine learning.

About one in 36 children were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in 2020, up from one in 44 in 2018, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network. The prevalence of aggression among children and adolescents with ASD is high, with parents reporting in a 2011 study that 68 percent had demonstrated aggression to a caregiver and 49 percent to non-caregivers.

Prior research work by the Northeastern University team showed that three minutes of wearable biosensor-recorded peripheral physiological and motion signals gathered from 20 youths with autism could predict aggression toward others one minute before it occurred using ridge-regularized logistic regression.

The new study aimed to extend that research to determine whether the recorded data could be used to predict aggression toward others even earlier.

Read more at MHealthIntelligence.com.

Psychotic disorders are serious illnesses that disrupt how a person thinks, feels, and perceives the world. People with these disorders, which include schizophrenia and other disorders with psychotic symptoms, have better outcomes if they receive early and comprehensive care. Without such care, people with psychosis often find it difficult to participate in work, school, or relationships and can experience significant impairment or disability.

Studies from other countries have found demographic differences in the rates at which psychotic disorders are diagnosed. However, few studies looked at these rates in U.S. populations. New research funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) found disparities in psychotic disorder diagnoses and showed that such diagnoses are associated with a range of negative health outcomes.

Researchers led by Winston Chung, M.D. , at Kaiser Permanente and Kathleen Merikangas, Ph.D., and Diana Paksarian, Ph.D., in the NIMH Intramural Research Program examined trends in the diagnosis of psychotic disorders in the United States from 2009 to 2019.

The data suggested disparities in diagnoses for psychotic disorders based on race and ethnicity. The patterns differed for nonaffective compared to affective psychotic disorders.

Read more at NIMH.NIH.gov.

In order to highlight pockets of excellence across the country, the NNED selects a partner organization to highlight once a month. Philio Inc DBA New Concepts has been selected as the Partner of the Month for December.

Philio Inc DBA New Concepts (New Concepts) is a faith based outpatient mental health and substance use disorder counseling agency. New Concepts believes in the ability to successfully recover from the use of drugs and /or alcohol — that individuals equipped with the proper resources can successfully manage their mental health disorders.

Some of the programs and services that are currently offered:

• Adolescent and Young Adult Mental Health Services
• Assessments and Referrals
• Individual and Family Counseling
• Crisis Intervention
• Community Psychiatric Supportive Treatment
• Medication Assisted Treatment
• Prevention/Intervention and Education

Learn more about Philio Inc DBA New Concepts and its mission to assist individuals in their recovery process so that they may become accountable and productive citizens.

View a list of previous NNED Partners of the Month.

Mental health practitioners vocalized the importance of culturally informed care at the Asian American Pacific Islander mental health panel on November 3 at UNC Asheville.

“One of the big things I think people should take away from this is the Asian American Pacific Islander group have very different experiences and backgrounds,” said An Truong, a mental health practitioner with Asian heritage.

Truong said, when interacting with the Asian population, people should always be reminded not to make assumptions.

“We might have some threads and cultural norms that tie us together, but in reality, we should remind ourselves of how vast Asia really is. For example, Northern and Southern Vietnam are vastly different, but it’s the same country,” Truong said.

Tai Kulenic, a mental health practitioner with Asian heritage, spoke about the term “model minority” during the panel discussion.

“It’s a responsibility and a burden. There is no model minority. There’s no way anyone could be a model for anything all the time,” Kulenic said.

Kulenic said there is a positive intention of implication behind it, but it is problematic and harmful as well with the obligation to succeed and the deep fear of failure.

“It leads to stereotypes and can put people of color against each other. I think it oversimplifies complex issues like race, class and scrutinization. I also feel like it can lead Asian Americans to feel like they are not individuals,” Kulenic said.

Read more at TheBlueBanner.net.

Research has found that one in five adolescents (between ages 12-18) will suffer from at least one diagnosable mental health disorder. In addition to that, suicide is the second leading cause of death among people ages 10-14, and the third leading cause of death among those ages 15-24 in the United States. The CDC reports that “Black youths are at a higher risk for depression, anxiety, and other mental health struggles than their non-Black peers.” The report also indicates that “suicide is increasing at a faster rate for Black youths than it is for any other racial or ethnic group (36.6%).” These are very sobering statistics and a clear sign that our youth are in crisis. The reality is that many parents will face a child suffering from a mental health disorder.

While some parents take general first aid training as part of their parenting journey, most struggle or feel ill-equipped to provide support to their children when they are experiencing mental health challenges. This is where Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) and becoming a Mental Health First Aider is so critical.

The National Council for Mental Wellbeing defines Mental Health First Aid as “a course that teaches you how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders. The training gives you the skills you need to reach out and provide initial help and support to someone who may be developing a mental health or substance use problem or experiencing a crisis.” Established in 2001 in Australia, MHFA made the leap to the United States where it was adopted and adapted for the U.S. audience. Mental Health First Aid USA has trained over three million people including former First Lady Michelle Obama. MHFA USA has a dedicated base of more than 15,000 instructors and provides an action plan that teaches people who receive training to identify and address potential mental illness or substance use disorders safely and responsibly.

Becoming a Mental Health First Aider means you can recognize the signs, symptoms, and behaviors associated with mental health and/or substance use challenges, that you are capable of creating a safe space conducive to open communication, and you are aware of the resources that exist to provide professional support to children and adolescents in need.

Read more at Essence.com.