Leading by example
APNA President Joyce Shea recognizes you as an asset to shaping care and can help you make an impact. See her ideas for getting involved.

Fresh initiatives, look for JAPNA
Take a look at the new editors and new opportunities for the Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association! Get the inside scoop on these initiatives.

End to Clozapine REMS a win for providers and patients
In a change benefiting patients with treatment resistant schizophrenia and their providers, the Clozapine Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy safety program is no longer required. How was APNA involved in this decision?

Inside the field of early and infant child mental health
From early interventions to the unique aspects of working with infants and young children, get insights from a psychiatric-mental health nurse practicing in this emerging area. Discover more about IECMH

New provisional data from CDC's National Vital Statistics System show a nearly 24% decline in drug overdose deaths in the U.S. for the 12 months ending in September 2024 compared to the previous year. This is the fewest overdose deaths in any 12-month period since June 2020. Full story

For women with, or at a risk for, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, or other psychiatric conditions, managing mental health during pregnancy and postpartum presents unique challenges. A recent MedScape article shares what to know when managing mental illness in pregnancy and postpartum. Full story

The FDA has approved label changes for once-monthly Sublocade, helping to reduce possible barriers to treatment initiation for opioid use disorder and speed up availability of treatment, reported Healio. The label changes include a rapid initiation protocol and alternative injection sites. Full story

Whether primary or secondary, delusional infestations (DI), a condition known by many names, can be effectively treated with a step-by-step process based on forming a therapeutic alliance, reported MedScape. The approach involves four phases with a focus on curing symptoms rather than convincing patients that the symptoms are delusional. Full story

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. renewed the public health emergency declaration addressing our nation’s opioid crisis, which will allow sustained federal coordination efforts and preserve key flexibilities that enable HHS to continue leveraging expanded authorities to conduct certain activities in response to the opioid overdose crisis. Full story

U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley is pushing the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to provide clear and accessible information on inpatient psychiatric facilities (IPFs) to better support patients and their families. While CMS has supported web-based tools to find and compare providers, the agency lacks a tool for comparing IPFs so that families can make fully-informed decisions. Full story

New York governor Kathy Hochul announced a $4 million expansion of the Community Mental Health Loan Repayment Program to include licensed professionals serving children and adolescents at programs licensed or funded by the state. The funding will provide at least 400 awards of up to $30,000 to help mental health professionals serving youth repay education loans and student debt, provided they work a minimum of three years at eligible mental health programs. Full story

Pennsylvania's 2025-26 budget proposal introduces a first-time state investment of $5 million to establish the Nurse Shortage Assistance Program. This initiative is modeled on Temple Health’s Nursing Scholars Program, which provides tuition support for students in exchange for a multi-year work commitment at participating hospitals, reported Nurse.org. Full story

NAMI released the new publication Trends in Mental Health and Criminal Justice State Policy. This issue brief provides policy recommendations and highlights successful state legislation from 2024 to reduce criminal justice system-involvement for people with mental illness. Full story

Click here to see letters APNA has signed on to as a part of its participation in coalitions that further policy for nursing and mental health.

The American Psychiatric Nurses Association is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.