APNA News - The Psychiatric Nursing Voice

President's Message
I could not begin my first message as APNA President without first acknowledging the tremendous leadership of outgoing President Beth Phoenix over the past year - she truly embodied her presidential theme's emphasis on psychiatric mental health nursing leadership and mentorship. I look forward to benefiting from her wisdom and experiences as she mentors me in my new position...maybe she'll even teach me how to use that lasso she had at the Annual Conference! (Cont'd)

Member Profile
Kris Lambert, PhD, MSN, RN is chair of the APNA Recovery Council and an Associate Professor at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, California. She sees working with nursing students as an opportunity to reduce stigma while also providing them with tools to provide safe, effective, and compassionate care. "In understanding the importance of mental health and wellness," she says, "students are able to practice self-care and in turn, promote mental health by instilling hope in those they serve." In this month's profile, Lambert shares her experience at the Voice Awards, which she attended as APNA's representative. (Cont'd)

Member News
Pamela Adamshick awarded Penn State's Novosel Award for Distinguished Nursing Alumni; Kayla Albright, an APNA Board of Directors Scholar, spotlighted in Georgia College article, an article by Rachel Clements, "Is Psychiatric Nursing Right for You?", published on NurseTogether.com; Andrea Crowley featured in a Nurse.com Article, "Easing the mind"; Kirstyn Kameg featured in article, "Grant helps RMU expand its nursing program to fill gaps in mental health care"; Michael Rice awarded Behavioral Health Education Center of Nebraska's Award for Distinguished Service. More Info

Recovery Pearl: Empowerment - by Pat Graham, RN, MSN, PMHCNS-BC, PMHNP-BC
As a concept of recovery, empowerment is closely aligned with the concept of self actualization - the ultimate ability to determine, direct and meet goals in life. As psychiatric nurses, we allow consumers the freedom and security necessary to take hold of the hope, and begin recognizing their ability to empower themselves by partnering, listening, educating, and caring. When the consumer senses caring and security, the shadows of mental illness begin to crumble. More Recovery Pearls

Annual Conference: Highlights from San Antonio!
A lasso wielding president, tai chi, hula hoops, book signings, not to mention more than 1300 nurses and psychiatric mental health professionals - that's just sampling of what we saw at the APNA 27th Annual Conference this past October 9th through 12th. Here's a quick play-by-play of what went down in San Antonio...(Cont'd)

Schizophrenia Policy Report: An International Call for Change
Earlier this year APNA Representative Mary Moller, DNP, ARNP, APRN, PMHCNS-BC, CPRP, FAAN joined an international group of experts for a think tank on schizophrenia policy. The resultant document, Schizophrenia: Time to Commit to Policy Change, was endorsed by APNA and published on October 10th in honor of World Mental Health Day. It calls for a more integrated and recovery-based approach towards the care of persons living with schizophrenia. (Cont'd)

Affordable Care Act: Resources Update - Webinar Tomorrow!
While we can't fix the glitches users are experiencing on the Health Insurance Marketplace, we can offer you tools and education to help you support your clients throughout the enrollment process. The Affordable Care Act Resource section in the APNA Resource Center is constantly updated and was even used as an example for other nursing organizations by HRSA Administrator Mary Wakefield! The most recent addition to this section is tomorrow's webinar from the National Council for Behavioral Health: The ABC's of Open Enrollment for Behavioral Health Providers (Thursday, October 31, 2013, 1:00pm - 2:30pm EDT). Affordable Care Act Resources

Funding Opportunity: Smoking Cessation Strategies
Announcing the new Virtual Nursing Academy of APNA Champions for Smoking Cessation! APNA members are invited to apply to join the academy, made possible through a partnership with the Smoking Cessation Leadership Center. 12-15 applicants with innovative smoking cessation strategies will receive an honorarium of $1,000 and complimentary registration to the APNA 28th Annual Conference, October 22-25, 2014 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Application Deadline: December 16, 2013 | More Info

Poster Gallery: View poster presentations from the APNA 27th Annual Conference online!
These peer-reviewed poster presentations offer insights on topics such as psychiatric transition trends impacting quality of care, collaboration between students and faculty to develop case studies, psychotherapy skill building, fall prevention strategies, and gender biases that contribute to victimization. Note: Contact Hours are not available for viewing posters online. View the 92 poster pdfs uploaded by this year's poster presenters: Visit the Poster Gallery

APNA Annual Activity Report: Summary of APNA Activities
Curious about how APNA has furthered our mission recently? From the APNA Board of Directors, the 2013 APNA Annual Activity Report summarizes our association's key activities over the past year. The report is available for review on the APNA website. Please send any feedback to ncroce@apna.org. APNA 2013 Annual Activity Report

New Feature of APNA Membership!
The opportunities that come with membership just expanded: An eMembership with the American Nurses Association is now included as a part of APNA membership! At no additional cost or dues increase members can now enjoy: digital access to ANA's journals and e-newsletters, free & discounted access to a range of professional development programs and continuing education, member discounts on ANA Leadership Institute products & Nursebooks, access to ANA's advocacy efforts, and much more! Learn More

Resource Roundup: New Resources Available in the APNA Resource Center

ACA Resources: 10/31 National Council Webinar - The ABC's of Open Enrollment for Behavioral Health Providers, SAMHSA toolkits for providers and consumers now available, Materials for small businesses and links to infographics, Provider-focused publications from CMS
Integrated Care Resources: Infographic from SAMHSA and NCBH
Recovery Resources: Upcoming 11/7 SAMHSA Webinar: Peer Practice and Context: Developing Quality Standards

RN & APRN Practice: Free 3-part Compliance Webinar Series from the National Council for Behavioral Health
Grants & Scholarships: Call for APNA Virtual Nursing Academy Applications, 2013 RWJF Executive Nurse Fellows Call for Applications, NINR Graduate Partnerships Program info posted
APPN Reports & Statistics: The Mental Health Workforce - A Primer

New Members: New Members: 392 new members since August!

In the largest genetic analysis of Alzheimer's ever completed, scientists have discovered 11 new genes that may be tied to the late-onset form of the dementia disease. Scientists scanned the brains of 74,076 older volunteers with Alzheimer's and others who did not have the disease in 15 countries to come up with their findings. The study was published in Nature Genetics on Oct. 27. Prior to this study, only 11 gene variants had been linked to late-onset Alzheimer's disease, including one called Apolipoprotein E-e4 (APOE-e4) which appeared to have the strongest impact on risk. Now, with the latest research, scientists have doubled the known gene variants linked to the disease, reported CBS News. Full Story

The discovery of the first chemical to prevent the death of brain tissue in a neurodegenerative disease has been hailed as the "turning point" in the fight against Alzheimer's disease, reported BBC. More work is needed to develop a drug that could be taken by patients. But scientists say a resulting medicine could treat Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's and other diseases. In tests on mice, the Medical Research Council showed all brain cell death from prion disease could be prevented. Full Story

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Vizamyl (flutemetamol F 18 injection), a radioactive diagnostic drug for use with positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of the brain in adults being evaluated for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia. Full Story

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA )released a report entitled Behavioral Health, United States, 2012 -- the latest in a series of publications (formerly known as Mental Health, United States) issued biennially by SAMHSA since 1980. This report features mental health and substance abuse statistics at the national and state levels from 40 different data sources. Full Story To download the report, click here.

The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) and The Balanced Mind Foundation (TBMF) are joining forces to improve the mental health of, and facilitate wellness for, individuals living with mood disorders from childhood throughout adulthood. Historically DBSA's programming has been almost exclusively focused on adults with the lived experience of a mood disorder and TBMF's programming has been centered on programming to support the families of children and adolescents living with bipolar disorder and other mood disorders. On January 1, 2014, TBMF's comprehensive family‐focused programming - including its dynamic online family support network - will become part of DBSA's program services and resources. Full Story

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Brintellix (vortioxetine) to treat adults with major depressive disorder. Six clinical studies in which adults with MDD were randomly assigned to receive Brintellix or placebo demonstrated that Brintellix is effective in treating depression. An additional study showed Brintellix decreased the likelihood of participants becoming depressed again after treatment of their MDD episode. These studies were conducted in the United States and other countries. Full Story

Communication with a nurse between appointments improves patient adherence to psychiatric medication, a new study shows. "The nurse-client relationship is really important. If a client feels you care about them, they're more likely to follow up with treatment," explained study author Valerie Markley, MSN, PMHCNS-BC, from Indiana University in Bloomington. Markley created a study to look at interventions that could help adults with serious mental illness, such as major depressive disorder, bipolar, schizophrenia, and anxiety, to stick to their medications and show up at appointments, reported MedScape. She presented the results at the American Psychiatric Nurses Association 27th Annual Conference in San Antonio. Full Story (Free registration required)

On October 28, 2013, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a final rule [CMS 3202-F] establishing a formal set of community mental health center (CMHC) conditions of participation, which are the health and safety regulations Medicare providers must meet to participate in the Medicare program. Full Story

The National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD), recently sent a letter to the Senate Finance Committee regarding mental health finance Issues. Click here to read the letter.

The National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD) has published a Resource Management Guide: Impacts of the Affordable Care Act on Coverage for Uninsured People with Behavioral Health Conditions (2013). The guide provides state-specific data on the number of uninsured people with behavioral health disorders who are eligible for health insurance under the ACA, the projected use rates for behavioral health services, and characteristics of the newly insured population. Click here to access the guide.

A new report, Prescription Drug Abuse: Strategies to Stop the Epidemic, finds that 28 states and Washington, DC scored six or less out of 10 possible indicators of promising strategies to help curb prescription drug abuse. Two states, New Mexico and Vermont, received the highest score receiving all 10 possible indicators, while South Dakota scored the lowest with two out of 10. According to the report by the Trust for America's Health (TFAH), prescription drug abuse has quickly become a top public health concern, as the number of drug overdose deaths - a majority of which are from prescription drugs - doubled in 29 states since 1999. The rates quadrupled in four of these states and tripled in 10 more of these states. Full Story

The American Psychiatric Nurses Association is Accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the
American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.