MFP/ANA e-Newsletter: August 29, 2025

MENTAL HEALTH, SUBSTANCE USE, AND NURSING ARTICLES

OpenAI Plans to Update ChatGPT After Parents Sue Over Teen’s Suicide (opens new window)

OpenAI is making changes to its popular chatbot following a lawsuit alleging that a teenager who died by suicide this spring relied on ChatGPT as a coach. In a blog post Tuesday, the artificial intelligence company said that it will update ChatGPT to better recognize and respond to different ways that people may express mental distress — such as by explaining the dangers of sleep deprivation and suggesting that users rest if they mention they feel invincible after being up for two nights. The company also said it would strengthen safeguards around conversations about suicide, which it said could break down after prolonged conversations. Read more (opens new window)

Sex Differences in Trends of Firearm Suicide Among Older Adults, 2014 to 2023 (opens new window)

Firearms are the leading method of suicide among adults aged 65 years or older. Older men are 13 times more likely to die by firearm suicide compared with older women. However, female gun ownership has surged in recent years, with nearly one-half of all new gun owners being women. This shift highlights the need to examine trends of firearm suicides among older adults. Read more (opens new window)

SAMHSA Announces $43M in Supplemental Funding to Support Youth Recovery Housing Services (opens new window)

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) today announced $43 million in new supplemental funding available to State Opioid Response (SOR) program grantees to expand recovery housing services for young adults, ages 18-24. This investment advances President Trump’s Executive Order, Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets. Read more (opens new window)

Integrating moral injury into forensic psychiatry (opens new window)

Moral injury has garnered increasing attention in contemporary research, expanding from its initial association with military veterans to encompass a broader range of populations exposed to trauma and adversity. Potentially morally injurious events involve perceived transgressions of one's own moral code (perpetration) or betrayals by trusted authorities who have exposed the person to unnecessary danger or harm. The betrayal dimension was first highlighted by Shay in Vietnam veterans, by Freyd in people who have experienced child abuse, and more recently in ethnic, sexual, and gender minorities following perceived breaches of trust by family, friends, and public services, with adverse outcomes. Read more (opens new window)

Testing Bidirectional Associations Between Maternal and Child Depression During Emerging Adolescence (opens new window)

Research has consistently shown links between parent and child depression. The prevailing assumption is that parent depression precedes the onset, persistence, and even exacerbation of child depression. However, it is plausible, albeit infrequently tested, that child depression triggers subsequent parent depression. Clarifying the direction and developmental timing of these associations is critical for designing and advocating for family-centered approaches to pediatric care. Read more (opens new window)  (opens new window)

Results of the Global Burden of Schizophrenia Study: 1 Trends from 1990 to 2021 and Projections to 2050 (opens new window)

Schizophrenia represents a substantial aspect of the overall burden associated with mental disorders and ranks as the third leading cause of disability worldwide. Utilizing data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD), Injury, and Risk Factors Study, this research examines global trends in the prevalence, incidence, and disability-adjusted life years (DALY) attributable to schizophrenia, with stratification by age, sex, and socio-demographic index (SDI). Between 1990 and 2021, the prevalence of schizophrenia increased from 13.62 million to 23.18 million, the incidence rose from 883,000 to 1.223 million, and the age-standardized disability rate (ASDR) escalated from 8.76 million to 14.82 million, reflecting increases of over 70.1%, 38.5%, and 69.2%, respectively. Read more (opens new window)

Interplay of genetic predisposition, plasma metabolome and Mediterranean diet in dementia risk and cognitive function (opens new window)

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and AD-related dementias (AD/ADRD) have a substantial genetic basis, with APOE4 homozygotes increasingly recognized as a distinct genetic subtype. To identify genotype-specific metabolic pathways and modifiable risk factors, we integrated genetic, plasma metabolomic and dietary data from 4,215 women and 1,490 men in prospective cohorts. Here we show that the associations of 57 metabolites with dementia risk varied by APOE4 genotype or other AD/ADRD risk variants. Read more (opens new window)

15 nurses fired by hospital after 12-year-old girl dies by suicide under their supervision, reports say (opens new window)

Fifteen nurses have been fired at a Washington state children’s hospital after a 12-year-old girl died by suicide at the facility where she was advised to have 24-hour supervision. According to a filed lawsuit, on the night of April 13, Sarah Niyimbona, 12, left her room in the Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital and died after jumping off a parking garage. Beginning in late 2024, Sarah was repeatedly admitted to Sacred Heart’s emergency department because of multiple attempts to end her own life. The filing says that despite the need for 24-hour supervision of Sarah, Providence removed the health care worker assigned to monitor her, along with removing the video monitoring system from her room. Read more (opens new window)

Potent Cannabis Products Linked to Psychosis, Mental Health Risks (opens new window)

Cannabis products containing high concentrations of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) -- the main psychoactive compound in marijuana -- were linked to psychosis, schizophrenia, and addiction, a systematic review found. Across 99 studies examining the effects of high-concentration THC products on mental health outcomes, 70% of the nontherapeutic studies (i.e., those not attempting to treat a medical condition or symptom) showed an unfavorable association with psychosis or schizophrenia and 75% found a relationship to cannabis use disorder (CUD). Read more (opens new window)  (opens new window)

Solastalgia: Climate Change’s Hidden Mental Health Crisis? (opens new window)

The word solastalgia is a fusion of solace and the Greek suffix for pain, algia. According to some experts, it may also help explain the harmful effects of climate change on mental health. Coined in 2003 by Australian philosopher Glenn Albrecht, the term refers to human distress caused by environmental changes to one’s home or surroundings, leading to a loss or lack of solace and resulting in feelings of pain or sickness. “Albrecht’s idea builds off Sigmund Freud’s classic 1919 essay, ‘Das Unheimliche,’ which argues that anxiety relies on an element he called the ‘unheimliche’ — translated as ‘un-homelike’ or ‘uncanny,’” Jacob Lee, MD, chair of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) Committee on Climate Change and Mental Health, told Medscape Medical News. Read more (opens new window)

AI in mental health care: Where to draw the line? (opens new window)

Artificial intelligence has become a standard tool in most industries, including health care. Yet, institutions are still working to draw lines around acceptable use within their specific contexts. For instance, schools may tell students they can use the technology to craft an outline but not to write a paper. For mental health care, one legislator has posed that the technology should go no further than administrative tasks. Read more (opens new window)

NC wants to use mobile clinics to expand substance use treatment (opens new window)

NC First Lady Anna Stein and Kelly Crosbie of NC DHHS talk about the importance of making treatment for substance use disorder available to more people at the unveiling of a mobile clinic in Raleigh. The bright red mobile clinic parked outside a recovery center in Raleigh represents what North Carolina officials say is a promising step toward bringing opioid treatment programs closer to more people who need them. Read more (opens new window)

HOTLINE RESOURCES

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (opens new window) or 1-800-273-TALK (8255) 

The Substance and Mental Health Services Administration (opens new window) provides COVID-19 guidance and resources to assist individuals, providers, communities and sates across the country. The website is updated daily.

The National CLAS Standards

The National CLAS Standards are a set of 15 action steps intended to advance health equity, improve quality, and help eliminate health care disparities by providing a blueprint for individuals and health and health care organizations to implement culturally and linguistically appropriate services. View the standards here (opens new window)