A special Delegate Assembly of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) approved the revised Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) and the Advanced Practice Registered Nurse Compact (APRNC). The NLC allows for registered nurses (RN) and licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPN/VN) to have one multistate license, with the ability to practice in both their home state and other NLC states. There are currently 25 states in the NLC. The APRNC allows an advanced practice registered nurse to hold one multistate license with a privilege to practice in other APRN compact states. Full Story

The number of U.S. children and teens being treated for mental health issues has risen by about 50% in the past 20 years, with most of those kids having relatively mild symptoms, reported HealthDay News. Full Story

One in 10 children and teens has been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), reported HealthDay News. That number has remained relatively steady since 2007, according to government estimates. Full Story

When patients with delirium are cared for by a coordinated team of healthcare professionals, time spent in the intensive care unit (ICU) and the duration of benzodiazepine and opiate therapy can be cut in half, reported Medscape.com. The multidisciplinary approach to delirium is used outside the ICU, but applying it "inside the ICU is quite novel and exciting," said Brenda Pun, RN, from the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN. Full Story

Scientists have long known that the symptoms of schizophrenia can be partly explained by abnormal connectivity in the brain. In the first study of its kind, researchers have used Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to identify how the brains of young people, who exhibit only some symptoms of schizophrenia, are wired differently, reported PsychCentral.com. Full Story

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first generic versions of Abilify (aripiprazole). Generic aripiprazole is an atypical antipsychotic drug approved to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Full Story

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a quarterly injection form of paliperidone (Invega Trinza, Janssen Pharmaceuticals) for schizophrenia, reported Medscape. Janssen Pharmaceuticals already markets a once-a-day tablet version of paliperidone (Invega) as well as a monthly intramuscular injection version (Invega Sustenna) for schizophrenia. Before patients begin quarterly intramuscular injections of paliperidone, they must first receive the monthly injections for at least 4 months. Full Story

A recent Hospitals & Health Networks article looks at four ways hospitals are improving behavioral health care. Full Story

New research offers novel strategies to reduce suicide risk among depressed children and adolescents prescribed selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), reported Pharmacy Times. Since SSRIs have been shown to increase suicidal thoughts and actions in pediatric and adolescent populations, the FDA issued a black box warning describing this risk in 2004. However, a recent study published in Translational Psychiatry noted the suicide rate among youth with major depressive disorder has increased since then - seemingly because clinicians hesitate to prescribe SSRIs, even though leaving depression untreated increases suicide risk to a greater extent. Full Story

The National Institutes of Health released recommendations that provide a framework for a bold and transformative Alzheimer’s disease research agenda. Developed at the recent Alzheimer’s Disease Research Summit 2015: Path to Treatment and Prevention, the highly anticipated recommendations provide the wider Alzheimer’s research community with a strategy for speeding the development of effective interventions for Alzheimer’s and related dementias. These recommendations call for a change in how the academic, biopharmaceutical and government sectors participating in Alzheimer’s research and therapy generate, share and use knowledge to propel the development of critically needed therapies. Full Story

New research presented at the American Psychiatric Association's 168th Annual Meeting explored how cultural differences can influence the diagnosis of common mental illnesses, including depression, mania and psychosis. Jhilam Biswas, M.D., was inspired to conduct this research by debates over whether "major psychiatric diagnoses are universal versus unique across culture." By surveying psychiatrists in the United States and India, Dr. Biswas was able to compare the symptoms each group considered most important for three major psychiatric diagnoses. Full Story

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is accepting applications for up to $24.6 million in planning grants for states to help implement certification for Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics. This program will support states in certifying community behavioral health clinics.  It will also establish prospective payment systems for Medicaid reimbursable services at the clinics. Full Story

The American Nurses Association (ANA) commends Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Representatives Lois Capps (D-CA) and David Joyce (R-OH) for introducing the Registered Nurse Safe Staffing Act. This bill would require Medicare-participating hospitals to establish registered nurse (RN) staffing plans using a committee, comprised of a majority of direct care nurses, to ensure patient safety, reduce readmissions and improve nurse retention. Full Story

Nursing assistants in Washington state can now provide mental health services to patients at a licensed health care facility, reported KLEWTV.com. House Bill-1727 was signed into law by Governor Jay Inslee. It helps rural areas effectively deliver mental health and chemical dependency services to patients. Full Story

In Montana, the 2015 Legislature approved an additional $4 million for personnel and services at state mental-health institutions, like the State Hospital in Warm Springs -- and the Bullock administration is mulling how and where to use that money, reported the Independent Record. Full Story

Maryland has become the 21st state in the union to allow nurse practitioners to practice independently of a physician. Gov. Larry Hogan signed the Nurse Practitioner Full Practice Authority Act, which allows nurse practitioners to prescribe certain drugs without having an "attestation agreement" with physicians. Full Story

Tennessee Republican Rep. Diane Black introduced a House bill that would essentially institute an ICD-10 transition period, reported HealthCare IT News. Full Story

On May 1, to support Mental Health Month, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and the philosophy hope & grace initiative are joining forces to launch the StigmaFree campaign. The StigmaFree campaign urges individuals, companies, organizations and campuses to create an American culture in which the stigma that is often associated with mental health conditions is ended and replaced by hope and support for recovery. Full Story

The American Psychiatric Foundation joined other leading organizations in supporting the Stepping Up Initiative, an unprecedented national collaboration designed to generate action in communities across the country for a common goal: to reduce the number of people with mental illnesses in U.S. jails. Stepping Up is being led by the National Association of Counties (NACo), the Council of State Governments (CSG) Justice Center and the American Psychiatric Foundation (APF), with support from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). Full Story

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