🎙️ Listen to the latest PN Special Report podcast: How does constant digital connection affect our mental health, and when does technology use become harmful? https://www.psychiatry.org/Psychiatrists/Education/Podcasts/Medical-Mind/2026/Psychiatric-News-Special-Report-Digital-Hyperconne

The APA Foundation’s Melvin Sabshin, M.D. Library and Archives holds approximately 1,700 rare books, including titles on medicine and psychoanalysis, anthropology, witchcraft and occult sciences, community and social psychiatry, psychosomatic medicine, and more. https://ow.ly/kXcN50ZV3ST

Food insecurity is a significant social determinant of mental health—and it’s expected to rise in the wake of historic cuts to a lifeline program for people on the brink of hunger. https://ow.ly/CQAr50ZV3Pf

This #WorldMentalHealthDay, let's make room for honest conversations, check in on one another, and work toward a world where everyone can access the mental health care they need. You deserve support, You deserve care.

Spouses, children, or other surrogates often must make medical decisions on behalf of hospitalized older adults, especially when cognitive impairment is present. https://alert.psychnews.org/personal-values-affect-decisions-about-life-sustaining-care-for-older-patients

Personal Values Affect Decisions About Life-Sustaining Care for Older Patients

Surrogates’ own values and assumptions about quality of life with dementia seem to contribute to their recommendations regarding whether patients with dementia get life-sustaining treatment (LST).

alert.psychnews.org

Universal screening across health care settings (not just emergency departments or psychiatric units) could be a pragmatic and proactive approach to identifying at-risk individuals. https://alert.psychnews.org/universal-suicide-screening-uncovers-many-hidden-at-risk-patients

Universal Suicide Screening Uncovers Many Hidden At-Risk Patients

In February 2015, Parkland Health—a large safety-net health system across Dallas—began universal suicide risk screening. The effort paid off, as identification of at-risk patients increased fivefold in the five years after implementation.

alert.psychnews.org

Psychiatry should take the lesson seriously without giving up useful AI. Let AI scribes reduce clerical preparation, then reinvest some of that recovered time in supervised clinical reasoning. 🔗👇

The right to marry is constitutionally guaranteed, including for psychiatric inpatients—but hospitalization can involve acute symptoms, fluctuating capacity, and power imbalances that complicate a decision intended to be enduring. 🔗👇

Missed a session at #APAAM26? 👀 Catch it later with APA On-Demand: 🎥 180+ sessions 🎓 75 CME ⏱ Learn on your schedule Buy during the meeting & save! https://ow.ly/nWBn50Z4mIy

What can you expect from the APA 2027 Annual Meeting? For starters, a six-session Presidential Track on ending stigma, advancing science, and securing parity—and five Distinguished Psychiatrist lectures from star physician-scientists. #APAAM27 https://ow.ly/oItX50ZUHBx

A large health care system implemented universal suicide risk screening across care settings, which led to improved suicide risk detection, including in outpatient non–behavioral health encounters. https://ow.ly/cLX750ZUIJ9

While cannabis and kratom may be perceived as safe and natural, their use during pregnancy is associated with potential risks. https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.pn.2026.10.10.7

Conversational artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots have been linked to emerging or worsening psychosis symptoms, but existing evidence is limited to individual case reports or simulated exchanges. https://alert.psychnews.org/ai-psychosis-more-common-in-patients-in-their-first-episode

AI Psychosis More Common in Patients in Their First Episode

Although rare overall, AI-induced psychosis was most common in people who were experiencing first-episode psychosis.

alert.psychnews.org

APA Staff took a "paws" 🐾 for mental health with therapy dogs Cooper and Asiago from Peopleanimalslove.org! Does your pet help you pause during a busy day? #Paws4MentalHealth

Do we question patients about their intent to self-harm to help ensure their safety—or to protect ourselves? 🔗👇

AI is often discussed in terms of its potential to improve health care. But without careful attention to how these systems are built and used, the outcome can move in the opposite direction. Learn more about bias, equity, and responsible AI use in APA’s AI resource. https://ow.ly/MRS750ZMLQf

AI Resource Document Webinar Series

Get the current guidance clinicians and organizations need to approach AI responsibly and effectively.

ow.ly

The 21st century is becoming increasingly defined by problematic digital connectivity, with the average American household owning 17 devices and receiving upwards of 200 notifications daily. Digital hyperconnectivity describes a state of constant and inescapable digital connection and its impact. 🔗👇

APA Congratulates Psychiatrist Karl Deisseroth, M.D., Ph.D. on Winning Nobel Prize https://ow.ly/fH9r50ZVafb

APA Congratulates Psychiatrist Karl Deisseroth, M.D., Ph.D. on Winning Nobel Prize

The American Psychiatric Association congratulates psychiatrist Karl Deisseroth, M.D., Ph.D., a member of the editorial board of The American Journal of Psychiatry, on receiving the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Dr. Deisseroth shares this honor with Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel for pioneering discoveries that led to the development of optogenetics.

psychiatry.org

Benzodiazepines are a widely prescribed class of medication used in the treatment of conditions such as anxiety, insomnia, and pain. However, there are significant concerns about their sedative properties, and their overdose risks. https://ow.ly/JHAo50ZUZ2T

Benzodiazepine Prescribing Has Decreased by More Than 25%

From 2013 to 2024, benzodiazepine prescribing dropped by more than 25%, but decreases were particularly notable among young adults under 30.

ow.ly

If the goal is to set up medications for serious mental illness to succeed, they should be prescribed not in isolation but as part of a biopsychosocial package. 🔗👇

Podcast | Mental Health Pathfinders: GLP-1 Medications: What Psychiatrists Need to Know https://ow.ly/Ep6f50ZV0ri

APA’s State Advocacy Conference, November 15–16 in Arlington, Virginia, brings psychiatrists together to strengthen their advocacy skills and prepare to engage on the state policy issues affecting their patients and profession. Register by October 8: https://ow.ly/FOhl50ZUI9S

State Advocacy Conference

APA's State Advocacy Conference is a unique opportunity for psychiatrists to lobby members of Congress in your respective capitol on the issues that affect mental health care.

ow.ly

“The movie maintained the central theme of the epic—tragedy and trauma—and did a good job showing how men and women experienced trauma in different ways.” 🔗👇

“Optogenetics provides opportunities for mapping the brain in a way that we could once only dream of.” https://alert.psychnews.org/stanford-psychiatrist-among-2026-nobel-medicine-winners

Stanford Psychiatrist Among 2026 Nobel Medicine Recipients

Karl Deisseroth, M.D., Ph.D., the D.H. Chen Professor of Bioengineering and of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, was co-awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine today.

alert.psychnews.org

Ahead of World Mental Health Day on October 10, the APA Foundation’s Center for Workplace Mental Health is helping employers prioritize employee well-being through customizable trainings in 10 languages. 🔗👇

If you work anywhere near child psychiatry, you have probably heard the same heart-wrenching story: A child is struggling and the family is stuck on a months-long waitlist. Child psychiatry access programs (CPAPs) can help bridge this gap. 🔗👇

At its quarterly meeting in July, APA’s CEO shared insights from the 2025 member experience survey showing that advocacy remains the area members value most. However, there was a gap between the importance of advocacy and their satisfaction with how APA is advocating. https://ow.ly/POkK50ZU1Jp

Though the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) became law nearly 20 years ago, patients still routinely experience barriers to mental health and substance use disorder treatment. https://ow.ly/uCVE50ZThc3

A day-long Multidisciplinary Behavioral Health Summit recently brought together leaders from APA and other mental health organizations to discuss shared challenges and opportunities for collaboration. https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.pn.2026.10.10.29

While GLP-1 RAs have been proven effective and helpful for patients with type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and others, a study in JAMA Psychiatry suggests that one patient population may be at risk for using them inappropriately. https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.pn.2026.10.10.5