Mental Health

Neuroscientist Takashi Kitamura works in the lab of Nobel laureate Susumu Tonegawa at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. One of their recent projects helped identify a brain circuit involved in processing the "where" and "when" of memory. "Ocean

30,000 Brain Researchers Meld Minds At Science's Hottest Hangout

11:49am October 23, 2015

by Jon Hamilton

Once an obscure hub of specialists, the yearly gathering of the Society for Neuroscience now draws some of the biggest and brightest from other fields too, seeking answers to brain and body secrets.

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Reducing Risk Of Assaults In Psychiatric Hospitals A Challenge

4:29pm October 22, 2015

NPR's Audie Cornish talks to Joel Dvoskin, a clinical and forensic psychologist who is a consultant to psychiatric hospitals around the country, on how to reduce the risk of assaults. He says no hospitals have been able to completely eliminate the risks, but there have been successes in reducing the number of assaults. He explains the key elements for reducing risk.

Sarah Silverman plays a profoundly depressed woman who has gone off her medication in the film I Smile Back.

Sarah Silverman Opens Up About Depression, Comedy And Troublemaking

2:38pm October 22, 2015

Throughout her life, comedian Sarah Silverman has experienced varying degrees of depression, which she likens to a "chemical change." She plays a profoundly depressed woman in the film I Smile Back.

Calif. Hospital Struggles To Control Patient-On-Patient Violence

4:30pm October 21, 2015

by Scott Shafer

Part one of this series explored how the violence at Napa State Psychiatric Hospital affects staff at the facility. In part two, NPR reports on patients who are victims of assault by other patients.

What To Do With California's Mentally Ill Defendants?

4:29pm October 21, 2015

by Scott Shafer

Jail is too dangerous for many defendants found incompetent to stand trial because of illnesses like schizophrenia, judges say. But psychiatric hospitals are now overcrowded and violent, too.

A shuttle bus exits a secure gate at Napa State Hospital after a media tour in 2011.

5 Years After A Murder, Calif. Hospital Still Struggles With Violence

7:57pm October 20, 2015

by Scott Shafer

Napa State Hospital in California added safeguards to protect workers after a psychiatric technician was murdered in 2010. But violence remains a part of daily life at the facility.

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Study Suggests Talk Therapy Eases Symptoms Of Schizophrenia

7:52pm October 20, 2015

NPR's Ari Shapiro interviews Nina R. Schooler, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at SUNY Downstate, about the study she co-authored regarding early treatment of schizophrenia.

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Experimental Drug Provides New Approach To Fighting Alzheimer's

6:24am October 20, 2015

by Jon Hamilton

A new experimental drug is designed to slow down Alzheimer's by protecting brain cells from toxins associated with the disease. That's a different approach from other Alzheimer's drugs, which have tried to eliminate those toxins.

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To Cure What Ails You, Bibliotherapists Prescribe Literature

6:24am October 20, 2015

There are all kinds of therapies to cure what ails you. But a new and intriguing approach is bibliotherapy, which dispenses a prescription of literature specifically tailored to a patient's unique circumstances. NPR's Rachel Martin speaks with pioneering bibliotherapist Susan Elderkin.

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Proponents of arbitration say the system is more efficient than going to court for both sides, but arbitration can be costly, too. And a 2009 study showed the typical awards in nursing home cases are about 35 percent lower than the plaintiff would get if

Suing A Nursing Home Could Get Easier Under Proposed Federal Rules

6:34pm October 19, 2015

by Ina Jaffe

Many families must sign a binding arbitration agreement when a loved one is admitted to a nursing home, pledging not to sue if something goes wrong. Proposed rules would ban that requirement.

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