Building Financial Wellness: Randomized Controlled Trial of a Financial Education and Support Intervention.

Objective: Many people receiving services for psychiatric disorders live on low incomes, navigate complex financial situations, and have limited economic security. The authors sought to determine whether a financial wellness intervention delivered virtually by peers would increase financial literacy, reduce economic strain, and improve financial competency.

Methods: One hundred participants receiving services for psychiatric disorders were recruited from community programs and via social media and were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive either an intervention called Building Financial Wellness (N=51) or services as usual (N=49).

Impact of Individual Budgets on Work and Financial Well-Being of Supported Employment Recipients With Serious Mental Illness.

Objective: The authors sought to determine whether providing recipients of supported employment with individual budgets from which they could purchase employment-related goods and services would improve employment and financial outcomes.

Methods: Sixty study participants were recruited from an individual placement and support (IPS) program and randomly assigned (1:1) to receive IPS services only (N=32) or IPS services with a 12-month $950 flexible fund called a career account (N=28). Participants receiving IPS and a career account met with staff who helped them identify employment goals and create a budget for purchases directly tied to these goals.

Trauma Across the Life Span and Multisystem Morbidity in Women With HIV.

Objective: Sexual and physical abuse are highly prevalent among women living with HIV (WLWH) and are risk factors for the development of mental health and substance use disorders (MHDs, SUDs), and cognitive and medical comorbidities. We examined empirically derived patterns of trauma, MHD, and SUD, and associations with later cognitive and health outcomes.

Methods: A total of 1027 WLWH (average age = 48.

Nutrition and Exercise for Wellness and Recovery: A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Community-Based Health Intervention.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of the Nutrition and Exercise for Wellness and Recovery (NEW-R) intervention for improving competency and behaviors related to diet, physical activity, and weight management.

Methods: Participants with psychiatric disabilities were recruited from four community mental health agencies and a hospital-based psychiatric outpatient clinic and randomly assigned to the NEW-R intervention (N=55) or control condition (N=58). Outcome measures included the Perceived Competence Scale, Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLP), and weight change; random-effects regression models were used.

Outcomes of Peer-Provided Individual Placement and Support Services in a Mental Health Peer-Run Vocational Program.

Objective: The authors sought to determine whether staff at a peer-run agency could deliver supported employment services with high fidelity to the individual placement and support (IPS) model and whether employment outcomes of peer-delivered IPS plus work-specific health promotion were superior to usual supported employment services.

Methods: Two teams from a vocational program of a large peer-run agency were studied from July 2015 to July 2017. One team received training and supervision in delivering IPS plus employment-focused physical wellness support and mentoring.

The importance of employment to workers with preexisting behavioral health disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objective: Little is known about the employment experiences of people with preexisting behavioral health conditions during the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, despite the recognized importance of work for this group.

Method: Two hundred and seventy two adults with behavioral health conditions, recruited through statewide mental health networks in NJ and NY, completed an online survey in April-May 2020. Multivariable analysis examined the effects of sleep and dietary changes, COVID-19 exposure, anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder-2), and depressive symptoms (Patient Health Questionnaire-2) on employment status and job changes.

Registry-Managed Care Coordination and Education for Patients With Co-occurring Diabetes and Serious Mental Illness.

Objective: Longitudinal changes in health outcomes of patients with serious mental illness and co-occurring diabetes were examined after introduction of an intervention involving electronic disease management, care coordination, and personalized patient education.

Methods: This observational cohort study included 179 patients with serious mental illness and diabetes mellitus type 2 at a behavioral health home in Chicago. The intervention employed a care coordinator who used a diabetes registry to integrate services; patients also received personalized diabetes self-management education.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health and daily life of adults with behavioral health disorders.

People with behavioral health disorders may be particularly vulnerable to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, yet little is known about how they are faring. A mixed-methods, anonymous needs assessment was conducted to understand changes in the lives of adults with mental health and substance use disorders since the pandemic onset. A cross-sectional, online survey was completed by 272 adults in April and May 2020, recruited from statewide networks of community programs in New Jersey and New York.

Serious mental illness, other mental health disorders, and outpatient health care as predictors of 30-day readmissions following medical hospitalization.

Objective: Prior research has not addressed whether both serious mental illness (SMI) and other mental health (OMH) disorders affect the likelihood of 30-day readmissions after medical hospitalizations, or whether post-discharge use of outpatient medical, mental health, and pharmacy services is associated with readmission likelihood.

Methods: Using the Truven Health Analytics MarketScan® Medicaid Multi-State Database, we studied 43,817 Medicaid beneficiaries, age 18-64, following discharge from medical hospitalizations in 2011. Logistic regression models compared all-cause, 30-day readmissions among those with SMI, OMH, and no psychiatric diagnosis, and examined associations of 30-day outpatient service use with 30-day readmissions.

Prevalence, Comorbidity, and Correlates of Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorders and Associations with HIV Risk Behaviors in a Multisite Cohort of Women Living with HIV.

We used the World Health Organization's Composite International Diagnostic Interview to determine the prevalence, comorbidity, and correlates of lifetime and 12-month behavioral health disorders in a multisite cohort of 1027 women living with HIV in the United States. Most (82.6%) had one or more lifetime disorders including 34.

Correlates of Co-Occurring Diabetes and Obesity Among Community Mental Health Program Members With Serious Mental Illnesses.

Objective: This study examined the prevalence and correlates of co-occurring obesity and diabetes among community mental health program members.

Methods: Medical screenings of 457 adults with serious mental illnesses were conducted by researchers and peer wellness specialists in four U.S.

Associations Between Gender and Obesity Among Adults with Mental Illnesses in a Community Health Screening Study.

The prevalence of obesity and its associations with gender, clinical factors, and medical co-morbidities were examined among 457 adults attending public mental health programs in 4 U.S. states.

Health risks and changes in self-efficacy following community health screening of adults with serious mental illnesses.

Physical health screenings were conducted by researchers and peer wellness specialists for adults attending publicly-funded community mental health programs. A total of 457 adults with serious mental illnesses attended health fairs in 4 U.S.

Outcomes of programs serving mothers with psychiatric disabilities and their young children: a multisite case file abstraction study.

Objective: This multisite study examined outcomes of mothers with mental illnesses receiving integrated clinical, rehabilitation, and parenting services for their preschool-age children. Mothers' outcomes included independent living and employment status, custody loss and reunification, psychiatric hospitalization, and substance abuse.

Method: Retrospective case file abstraction yielded data regarding 104 mothers served over 12-month periods during 1995-1999 at 4 programs located in 3 different states.

Psychiatric symptoms moderate the effects of mental illness self-management in a randomized controlled trial.

Depression has been shown to moderate the effects of physical illness self-management (ISM) programs. We attempted to replicate these findings for a mental ISM intervention. Outpatients with serious mental illness (N = 428) from eight Tennessee communities were randomly assigned to receive a peer-led self-management intervention called Building Recovery of Individual Dreams and Goals Through Education and Support or services as usual.

Do HIV-positive women receive depression treatment that meets best practice guidelines?

This study addressed whether psychopharmacologic and psychotherapeutic treatment of depressed HIV+ women met standards defined in the best practice literature, and tested hypothesized predictors of standard-concordant care. 1,352 HIV-positive women in the multi-center Women's Interagency HIV Study were queried about depressive symptoms and mental health service utilization using standards published by the American Psychiatric Association and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to define adequate depression treatment. We identified those who: (1) reported clinically significant depressive symptoms (CSDS) using Centers for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale scores of ≥16; or (2) had lifetime diagnoses of major depressive disorder (MDD) assessed by World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interviews plus concurrent elevated depressive symptoms in the past 12 months.

Impact of Wellness Recovery Action Planning on service utilization and need in a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of a mental illness self-management intervention, called Wellness Recovery Action Planning (WRAP), on the use of and need for mental health services over time compared with nutrition and wellness education.

Method: Participants were recruited from outpatient community mental health settings in Chicago, Illinois. Using a single-blind, randomized controlled trial design, 143 individuals were assigned to WRAP or to a nutrition education course and assessed at baseline and at 2-month and 8-month follow-up.

Consumer empowerment and self-advocacy outcomes in a randomized study of peer-led education.

This study examined the effectiveness of the Building Recovery of Individual Dreams and Goals (BRIDGES) peer-led education intervention in empowering mental health consumers to become better advocates for their own care. A total of 428 adults with mental illness were randomly assigned to BRIDGES (intervention condition) or a services as usual wait list (control condition). Interviews were conducted at enrollment, at the end of the intervention, and 6-months post-intervention.

Randomized controlled trial of peer-led recovery education using Building Recovery of Individual Dreams and Goals through Education and Support (BRIDGES).

Objective: The purpose of this study was to test the efficacy of a peer-led, mental illness education intervention called Building Recovery of Individual Dreams and Goals through Education and Support (BRIDGES).

Method: Subjects were recruited from outpatient community mental health settings in eight Tennessee communities. Using a single-blind, randomized controlled trial design, 428 individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) were interviewed at baseline and assigned to BRIDGES or to a services as usual wait list control condition.

Early outcomes and lessons learned from a study of the Building Recovery of Individual Dreams and Goals through Education and Support (BRIDGES) program in Tennessee.

Objective: Peer-led education interventions have the potential to provide mental health consumers with the knowledge, skills and support they need to live successful and rewarding self-determined lives. However, few studies have explored whether and how these interventions enhance recovery. This study addresses this knowledge gap by examining changes among 160 participants in the Building Recovery of Individual Dreams and Goals (BRIDGES) education program.

Improving knowledge about mental illness through family-led education: the journey of hope.

Objective: Families often do not receive the information that they need to care for their adult relatives with mental illness. This study examined the effectiveness of a family-led education intervention, the Journey of Hope, in improving participants' knowledge about mental illness and its treatment and decreasing their information needs.

Methods: A total of 462 family members of adults with mental illness in Louisiana participated in the study; 231 were randomly assigned to immediate receipt of the Journey of Hope course (intervention group), and 231 were randomly assigned to a nine-month waiting list for the course (control group).

Changes in caregiving satisfaction and information needs among relatives of adults with mental illness: results of a randomized evaluation of a family-led education intervention.

The authors examined changes in caregiving satisfaction and information needs among 462 relatives of individuals with mental illness who participated in a study of a family-led education course, the Journey of Hope (JOH). Participants were randomly assigned to receive JOH or to a control group waiting list and followed for 9 months. General linear model repeated measures analysis of variance found that, compared with the control group, the intervention group showed significant improvement in caregiving satisfaction and information needs following course completion and maintained these gains for another 6 months.

Psychological well-being and relationship outcomes in a randomized study of family-led education.

Context: Family members of adults with mental illness often experience emotional distress and strained relationships.

Objective: To test the effectiveness of a family-led educational intervention, the Journey of Hope, in improving participants' psychological well-being and relationships with their ill relatives.

Design And Setting: A randomized controlled trial using a waiting list design was conducted in the community in 3 southeastern Louisiana cities.