A mixed-methods analysis of moral injury among healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare workers faced grave responsibilities amidst rapidly changing policies and material and staffing shortages. Moral injury, psychological distress following events where actions transgress moral beliefs/ expectations, increased among healthcare workers. We used a sequential mixed methods approach to examine workplace and contextual factors related to moral injury early in the pandemic.

Prior resilience to trauma & coping during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background And Objective: This study examined the potential influence of pre-pandemic psychological resilience on use of approach or avoidant coping styles and strategies to manage stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. We hypothesized that higher resilience would be associated with more approach coping and less avoidant coping.

Design And Methods: Longitudinal cohort data were from the Nurses' Health Study II, including 13,143 female current and former healthcare professionals with pre-pandemic lifetime trauma.

Prepandemic Resilience to Trauma and COVID-19 Infection in Older Women.

Objective: Prior work suggests that psychological resilience to trauma may protect not only mental but also physical health. This study examined the relationship of prepandemic psychological resilience to lifetime trauma with self-reported COVID-19 infection and symptoms during the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Data are from 18,670 longitudinal cohort participants in the Nurses' Health Study II.

Social Support and Associated Factors Among Men and Women in Pre-COVID Substance Use Treatment.

Low levels of social support are related to negative health outcomes, representing further obstacles to recovery from substance use disorder (SUD). This study examined relationships among stressors, symptoms and social support in 124 women and 102 men engaged in two outpatient public sector substance use treatment programs. Multiple linear regression analyses were utilized to assess relationships between variables of interest and social support.

A Network Comparison of Sexual Dysfunction, Psychological Factors, and Body Dissociation between Individuals with and without Sexual Trauma Histories.

Sexual dysfunction is associated with psychological symptoms, including depression and anxiety. Sexual dysfunctions are often attributed to dissociation symptoms in individuals who reported sexual trauma histories. This study utilized a network approach to analyze relationships between sexual and psychological symptoms and examine whether the identified network structures differed between individuals who reported a history of sexual trauma and those who did not.

Implementing Integrated Early Childhood Mental Health Services in Primary Care: Relationships, Vision, and Sustainability.

The Massachusetts Multi-City Young Children's System of Care Project was a federally funded program to provide integrated early childhood mental health (ECMH) services in primary care for families of very young children (birth-six years old) with Serious Emotional Disturbances across three cities in Massachusetts, U.S.A.

Psychological Resilience to Trauma and Risk of COVID-19 Infection and Somatic Symptoms Across 2 Years.

Objective: Exposure to trauma increases the risk of somatic symptoms, as well as acute and chronic physical diseases. However, many individuals display psychological resilience, showing positive psychological adaptation despite trauma exposure. Resilience to prior trauma may be a protective factor for physical health during subsequent stressors, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

Intimate Partner Violence, Mental Health Symptoms, and Modifiable Health Factors in Women During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the US.

Importance: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence and severity of intimate partner violence (IPV) increased. Associations between IPV and mental health symptoms and modifiable health factors early in the pandemic have yet to be explored.

Objective: To prospectively investigate the association of IPV with greater risk of mental health symptoms and adverse health factors during the COVID-19 pandemic in 3 cohorts of female participants.

Alignment of state-level policies and public attitudes towards abortion legality and government restrictions on abortion in the United States.

Background: Contextual factors can shape public opinion towards abortion. We investigated the association between the state-level abortion legislative climate and individual attitudes towards abortion legality and government restrictions of abortion access in the United States.

Methods: Data come from the 2020 Cooperative Congressional Election Study (n = 61,000).

Sexual and physical revictimization in U.S. military veterans.

The present study examined revictimization, defined as sexual or physical assault in adulthood that followed a history of childhood maltreatment. We aimed to identify factors associated with revictimization over time in a group of U.S.

Social support over time for men and women veterans with and without complex trauma histories.

Social support is closely linked to health, but little is known about United States (U.S.) veterans' social support over time and factors that may influence their support trajectories.

Pilot outcomes of a filmmaking intervention designed to enhance treatment entry and social reintegration of veterans.

Military personnel transitioning to civilian life have reported significant challenges in reintegrating into civilian culture. Filmmaking has been used as a therapeutic intervention to enhance the community reintegration of veterans, but there are no published quantitative data documenting its impact. The present study provides outcome data on 40 veterans who participated in the I Was There (IWT) filmmaking workshop.

Post-9/11 military veterans' adjustment to civilian life over time following separation from service.

Objectives: US military veterans face many challenges in transitioning to civilian life; little information is available regarding veterans' reintegration experiences over time. The current study characterized veterans' postdeployment stressful life events and concurrent psychosocial wellbeing over one year and determined how stressors and wellbeing differ by demographic factors.

Methods: Recent Post-911 veterans (n = 402) were assessed approximately every three months for 1 year.

Engaging and Supporting Young Children and their Families in Early Childhood Mental Health Services: The Role of the Family Partner.

This study explores the role of family partners, peer professionals with lived experiences of raising a child with behavioral health needs, and their value in primary and community-care based mental health services for young children aged 0-8 years. Interviews and focus groups were conducted with staff, leadership, and caregiver participants (n = 38) from two early childhood mental health programs and analyzed using thematic analysis. Five interdependent themes emerged: (1) the centrality of lived experience to the family partner role; (2) the importance of the family partner in family engagement and relationship building; (3) the value added by the family partner in navigating systems; (4) the ability of the family partner to build skills and empower caregivers; (5) the role of the family partner in alleviating caregiver stress and other mental health concerns.

Community-Level Prevention of Childhood Maltreatment: Next Steps in a World with COVID-19.

Maltreatment of children continues to be a major public health concern, with high social, economic and health burdens. Rates vary by a number of factors that can be categorized into different levels of the social ecology. Research and theory in this field point to the importance of community-level factors that can contribute to either risk or prevention of child maltreatment.

Child Sexual Abuse and Compulsive Sexual Behavior: A Systematic Literature Review.

Purpose Of Review: Information on potential risk factors and clinical correlates of compulsive sexual behavior (CSB) may help inform more effective prevention and treatment measures. Sexual victimization, specifically, child sexual abuse (CSA), has been associated with CSB.

Recent Findings: This systematic review describes 21 studies on the relationship between CSA and CSB.

The relationship of pre- and post-resettlement violence exposure to mental health among refugees: a multi-site panel survey of somalis in the US and Canada.

Background: A large body of research highlights the lasting impact of pre-resettlement violence on the mental health of refugees after resettlement. However, there is limited research on violence exposure after resettlement and its association with mental health. We examine the association of pre- and post-resettlement violence with post-resettlement mental health symptoms in a survey of Somali refugees in the US and Canada.

Chipped or Whole? Listening to Survivors' Experiences With Disclosure Following Sexual Violence.

Sexual violence is a prevalent crime but vastly underreported and with serious long-term health consequences for survivors. Disclosure of sexual violence represents a social experience that may offer support towards healing or further traumatization depending on the response received. Although current research suggests that process of disclosure itself is important, as are social responses, there is a dearth of research examining the perceived impact of initial responses to disclosure on healing and relationships, particularly over time.

Social Functioning in Individuals With Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: A Systematic Review.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can lead to multiple deleterious outcomes and has negative, sometimes debilitating, impacts on general functioning of those affected. This systematic review of 26 articles evaluates the existing literature on social functioning outcomes used in PTSD research, the association between PTSD and social functioning, and the impact of interventions for PTSD on social functioning. A review of 26 articles using the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines for systematic reviews showed that PTSD was associated with significant impairment in global social functioning.

Trauma-informed Drug Screens for Veterans with Co-occurring Disorders: A Case Series.

: This case series describes and illustrates the effective use of a trauma-informed approach, GLAPE, to provide drug screens for individuals in substance use treatment programs. The GLAPE approach recognizes that individuals who have experienced traumatic events and are recovering from substance use difficulties may also face unique challenges when engaging in mental health treatment. The nature of drug screening procedures in practice may feel invasive and triggering for clients with trauma histories.

Violence Exposure and Mental Health Among Resettled Refugees: A Systematic Review.

Refugee populations are often characterized by their high exposure to violence, which are tied to various challenges upon resettlement. This systematic review synthesizes the empirical literature related to violence exposure for refugees resettled in high-income countries and the impact of that exposure on mental health symptoms. The authors reviewed quantitative studies published from 2000 to 2018 and found 12 studies met criteria for inclusion.

Connecting Veterans and Their Community Through Narrative: Pilot Data on a Community Strengthening Intervention.

Military personnel transitioning to civilian life commonly report difficulty with establishing friendships, reconnecting with family, and a greater sense that they do not "fit in." Personal narrative interventions have the potential to increase the community's interest and understanding of Veterans' experience. This study examines the impact of a narrative intervention in which Veterans used film or verbal storytelling to describe their experience of being a Veteran to civilian audiences.

It all adds up: Addressing the roles of cumulative traumatic experiences on military veterans.

Background: Posttraumatic stress symptoms are common after discharge from military service in male and female Post-9/11 veterans, many of whom experienced combat.

Objective: This is a study of the impacts of childhood and adult assaults are studied both separately and together on the level of posttraumatic stress symptoms in male and female Post-9/11 veterans (N = 850) after discharge from military service.

Participants And Setting: This cross-sectional secondary analysis uses data from the baseline interviews of the Survey of Experiences of Returning Veterans (SERV) cohort study.

Meaning and Management of Multiple Medications Among Public Mental Health Service Users.

Public mental health service users frequently manage multiple health conditions, and are often prescribed multiple medications. While medications are useful tools in treating diagnosed mental illnesses, they bring management challenges and also can carry complex meanings for the individuals taking them. This study utilized a qualitative methodological approach to examine the experience and meaning of polypharmacy among public mental health services users.

Use of Social Robots in Mental Health and Well-Being Research: Systematic Review.

Background: Technology-assisted clinical interventions are increasingly common in the health care field, often with the proposed aim to improve access to and cost-effectiveness of care. Current technology platforms delivering interventions are largely mobile apps and online websites, although efforts have been made to create more personalized and embodied technology experiences. To extend and improve on these platforms, the field of robotics has been increasingly included in conversations of how to deliver technology-assisted, interactive, and responsive mental health and psychological well-being interventions.