Mr John Moloney T.D., Minister for Disability and Mental Health noted the publication of the National Office for Suicide Prevention (NOSP) Annual Report for 2009. The Report details the initiatives by the NOSP, HSE staff and many community and voluntary groups around the country who are working in the area of suicide prevention and are bringing forward ideas and initiatives to tackle this very serious problem. The Annual Report also contains the latest data on suicide from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) and data on self harm from the National Suicide Research Foundation…

Clinical depression and anxiety during pregnancy results in smaller babies that are more likely to die in infancy, according to new research published in the open access journal BMC Public Health. The study, which focused on women living in rural Bangladesh, provides the first finding of its kind in a non-Western population. The research indicates that mental health issues are likely to be a primary contributor to infant mortality and poor child health, above poverty, malnutrition or low socio-economic status…

An international group of researchers led by the Peninsula Medical School and the University of Exeter have for the first time identified changes in sex hormones associated with BPA exposure in men, in a large population study. The study results are published in the latest issue of Environmental Health Perspectives. Researchers analysed data from the InCHIANTI study, an Italian population sample. The team measured the amount of BPA excreted per day in urine samples. 715 adults aged between 20 and 74 years were studied…

15% of patients experience more pain, physical and emotional problems a year after surgery than before their operation and 24% have less vitality, according to a study of over 400 patients published online by the British Journal of Surgery. Twelve months after their operation 17% also reported greater pain, 14% said their functional abilities had reduced and 16% had poorer mental health. The results can be partly explained by physical and psychological factors, such as acute postoperative pain in the first four days after surgery and presurgical anxiety…

The Mental Health/Mental Retardation (MH/MR) Coalition sent a letter to Governor Edward G. Rendell urging him to protect funding to services for people with mental illness, intellectual disabilities and substance abuse disorders during the budget balancing process. The group issued the call in response to budget adjustments being contemplated by the state as a result of a lower than anticipated Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP)…

Daniel Lapsley, Ph.D., Chairman of the Department of Psychology for Notre Dame University, gives a significant amount of credit to Madison Center, Indiana’s largest community mental health agency, for Notre Dame’s coup in recruiting two world-class researchers. Now Notre Dame and Madison Center have created a partnership to collaborate on research that is designed to improve treatment and therapies for mental health patients. Lee Anna Clark, Ph.D., formerly a professor and collegiate fellow in the Department of Psychology at University of Iowa, and David Watson, Ph.D…

Individuals on long term incapacity benefit because of mental health problems could be identified by their GPs three years before they stop working, finds a research paper published on bmj.com. The research, led by Professor Jill Morrison at the University of Glasgow, also says that there is no significant variation across GP practices in the UK in the rate of patients claiming long term sick benefit. Morrison and colleagues argue that the varying rates of benefit claims are due to population differences and not to GPs issuing sickness certificates inappropriately…

Exposure to organophosphate (OP) pesticides before birth can increase susceptibility to attention disorders such as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to new research published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP). The new study is part of a growing body of research indicating that exposure to OP pesticides can adversely affect brain development…

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) has unveiled an Elections 2010 website for grassroots advocates to use in reminding candidates for public office that “Mental Health Gets My Vote.” “Election Day is less than three months away,” said NAMI Executive Director Michael J. Fitzpatrick. “Elections this year at every level are critical ones for mental health. Strong, non-partisan dialogue is urgent. ” “State budget crises across the country have led to massive cuts in mental health services that have put lives at risk..

A newly formed advisory committee will develop and coordinate a strategic federal research agenda on environmental and genetic factors related to breast cancer. The 19-member Interagency Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Coordinating Committee (IBCERCC) was established by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), in collaboration with the National Cancer Institute (NCI), to review all breast cancer research efforts conducted or supported by federal agencies. The committee will develop recommendations for the secretary of the U.S…