San Francisco expands civilian response to mental health 911 calls

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (15) ◽  
pp. 8-8
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Civilian Response

scholarly journals Use of Korean dramas to facilitate precision mental health understanding and discussion for Asian Americans

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Van My Ta Park ◽  
Cate Jongkyung Park ◽  
Charles Kim ◽  
Nhi Cristina Y Nguyen ◽  
Anh T Tran ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Asian Americans ◽  
Health Knowledge ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mental Health Research ◽  
Educational Tool ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Language Groups ◽  
Precision Health

Summary Precision mental health holds great potential for revolutionizing care and reducing the burden of mental illness. All races and ethnicities such as Asian Americans, the fastest growing racial group in the United States (U.S.), need to be engaged in precision mental health research. Owing to its global popularity, Korean drama (‘K-drama’) television shows may be an effective educational tool to increase precision mental health knowledge, attitudes and behaviors among Asian Americans. This qualitative study examined the participants’ perspectives about and acceptance of using K-dramas to educate and engage Asian Americans about precision mental health. Twelve workshops were conducted in English, Vietnamese and Korean with a convenience sample in the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. (n = 122). Discussions were coded for themes. Findings revealed that all language groups reported positive reactions to using K-dramas to learn about precision health, genetics and mental health. Overall, participants shared that they learned about topics that are not generally talked about (e.g. precision health; genetic testing; mental health), from other people’s perspectives, and the importance of mental health. Participants expressed how much they enjoyed the workshop, how they felt relieved due to the workshop, thought the workshop was interesting, and had an opportunity for self-reflection/healing. This pilot test demonstrated that K-dramas has promise to be used as a health educational tool in a workshop format focused on mental health among a diverse group of Asian Americans. Given the widespread access to K-dramas, they present a scalable opportunity for increasing awareness about specific health topics.

scholarly journals Psychosocial Determinants of HIV Stigma among Men Who Have Sex with Men in San Francisco, California

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (15) ◽  
pp. 8031
Author(s):  
Dharma N. Bhatta ◽  
Jennifer Hecht ◽  
Shelley N. Facente
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Hiv Stigma ◽  
Hiv Care ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Adjusted Risk ◽  
Sex With Men ◽  
Living With Hiv

Background: Stigma and discrimination are major challenges faced by people living with HIV (PLWH), and stigma continues to be prevalent among PLWH. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 584 men who have sex with men (MSM) living with HIV between July 2018 and December 2020, designed to better understand which demographic and behavioral characteristics of MSM living with HIV in San Francisco, California are associated with experience of stigma, so that programs and initiatives can be tailored appropriately to minimize HIV stigma’s impacts. Methods: This analysis was conducted with data from San Francisco AIDS Foundation (SFAF) encompassing services from multiple different locations in San Francisco. Data about the level of HIV-related stigma experienced were collected through a single question incorporated into programmatic data collection forms at SFAF as part of the client record stored in SFAF’s electronic health record. We performed linear regression to determine the associations between self-reported experiences of HIV stigma and other characteristics among MSM living with HIV. Results: HIV stigma was low overall among MSM living with HIV who are actively engaged in HIV care in San Francisco; however, it was significantly higher for the age groups of 13–29 years (adjusted risk difference (ARD): 0.251, 95% CI: 0.012, 0.489) and 30–49 years (ARD: 0.205, 95% CI: 0.042, 0.367) when compared to the age group of 50 years and older, as well as people who were homeless (ARD: 0.844, 95% CI: 0.120, 1.568), unstably housed (ARD: 0.326, 95% CI: 0.109, 0.543) and/or having mental health concerns (ARD: 0.309, 95% CI: 0.075, 0.544), controlling for race, injection history, and viral load. Conclusions: These findings highlight an opportunity to develop culturally, socially, and racially appropriate interventions to reduce HIV stigma among MSM living with HIV, particularly for younger men and those struggling with housing stability and/or mental health.

scholarly journals A Comparison of Mental Health Outcomes in the United States and Italy at Different Levels of Cumulative COVID-19 Prevalence

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony D Mancini ◽  
Gabriele Prati
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
New York ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
The United States ◽  
Ptsd Symptoms ◽  
General Distress ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
Low Prevalence ◽  
Different Levels

How does the prevalence of COVID-19 impact people’s mental health? In a preregistered study (N = 857), we sought to answer this question by comparing demographically matched samples in four regions in the United States and Italy with different levels of cumulative COVID-19 prevalence. No main effect of prevalence emerged. Rather, prevalence region had opposite effects, depending on the country. New York City participants (high prevalence) reported more general distress, PTSD symptoms, and COVID-19 worry than San Francisco (low prevalence). Conversely, Campania participants (low prevalence) reported more general distress, PTSD symptoms, and COVID-19 worry than Lombardy (high prevalence). Consistent with these patterns, COVID-19 worry was more strongly linked with general distress and PTSD symptoms in New York than San Francisco, whereas COVID-19 worry was more strongly linked with PTSD in Campania than Lombardy. In exploratory analyses, media exposure predicted and mapped on to geographic variation in mental health outcomes.

scholarly journals E-Cigarette Use and Perceptions Among Veterans Receiving Outpatient Treatment in Veterans Affairs Substance Use and Mental Health Clinics

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Devika Dixit ◽  
Ellen Herbst ◽  
Smita Das
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Substance Use ◽  
General Population ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Veterans Administration ◽  
Cigarette Use ◽  
Mental Health Clinics ◽  
Black African ◽  
Significant Difference

ABSTRACT Introduction Individuals with substance use disorders and/or mental health (MH) conditions have higher rates of cigarette smoking than the general population. Electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) while gaining popularity pose health risks. Herein we investigate risk perceptions and attitudes toward e-cigarettes in military Veterans with MH conditions. Materials and Methods Participants included U.S. Veterans receiving services from Veterans Administration MH/substance use disorder clinics in the San Francisco Bay Area (N = 98; 95% male, 44% White, 34% Black/African American), who completed a survey on smoking and health. Results compare attitudes and perceptions regarding e-cigarette use between ever and never e-cigarette users. The study was reviewed by the Institutional Review Board at both the Veterans Administration and University. Results Most respondents reported being current/past cigarette smokers (91%) and over a third reported having ever used an e-cigarette (38%). Most believed that e-cigarettes are not safe, are potentially dangerous, are potentially addictive if they use every day and are tempting and appealing to youth. Fifty-one percent of ever-users agreed with a statement that e-cigarettes can help people quit smoking regular cigarettes completely, and there was a significant difference in this belief when comparing them with never-users (23% agreed); χ2 = 9.259, P = 0.010. Conclusions Proportion of e-cigarette use in this Veteran sample is greater than the general population. We observed high risk perception about e-cigarettes among all respondents and differences in perceived helpfulness of e-cigarettes for quitting in ever-users versus never-users in this sample. More consistent assessment of tobacco use among Veterans, with inclusion of ENDS use, would help inform prevention and treatment priorities, especially as information on health impacts of ENDS surfaces.

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