Medical Schools Win Grants for Community MH Projects

Baylor College of Medicine: Students used a portable, handheld computer module loaded with a screening instrument—the Shedler Quick Psycho-Diagnostics Panel—to screen homeless persons at Houston shelters for a range of mental disorders. Of homeless individuals screened, 68 percent were positive for at least one disorder and were referred to a follow-up clinic in the public health system for further workup. Follow-up at three months showed that 46 percent of those referred for followup care had used the referral services. The presenter was Yasmin Owusu.

Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center: Students developed a program to augment medical-student-run clinics for the homeless in New Orleans by training medical students to include a mental health screening in their patient assessments. A mental health screening questionnaire was added to each patient's chart; patients for whom there were significant findings on the screening completed the appropriate module of the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. Patients who were then found to need further mental health evaluation were referred to county-supported, private, or LSU-affiliated outpatient mental health centers. The presenters were Michelle Durham and Steven Starks.

Michigan State University–Upper Peninsula College of Human Medicine: The Upper Peninsula Maternal Emotional Support Program was developed to provide outreach, educational, and screening programs for new mothers in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. An inpatient screening program for postpartum depression (PPD) risk assessment was developed to identify at-risk new mothers and to facilitate an interventional protocol for each high- and intermediate-risk mother. A PPD provider network for the region was also created. The presenter was Sarah Roberts, M.D., now a physician with the Alaska Family Medicine Residency Program.

SUNY Downstate College of Medicine: Using standardized screening tools, students screened homeless individuals from two Brooklyn, N.Y., homeless shelters for generalized anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder. The project helped develop a strong relationship between the shelters and SUNY Downstate Medical Center, allowing students to continue screening residents at the shelters. The presenters were Danielle Baek and Elizabeth Streicker.

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center at Amarillo: The five-item Geriatric Depression Scale was used to screen approximately 150 elderly patients for depression at community health fairs in both rural and metropolitan areas of the Texas panhandle region. Thirteen individuals screened positive for depression; more than 23 percent of screening subjects had never been screened for depression before. Presenting was Steve Burgess, M.D., now a physician in the Texas Tech residency program.

Tufts University School of Medicine: The “Ready to Feel Better” campaign is a wide-ranging mental health promotion effort aimed at encouraging awareness of mental health issues specific to the Pan-Asian community of Boston. The campaign made use of posters, flyers, handouts, screening cards, and pins that were distributed throughout the community, as well as community presentations on mental health subjects and advertisements and articles in community newspapers. The presenter was Michael Homer.

Vanderbilt University School of Medicine: Students developed a mental health awareness curriculum for women prisoners in Davidson County Correctional Development Center. The curriculum consisted of workbooks and lessons based on the principles of hope, personal responsibility, education, self-advocacy, and support. A library of literature on mental health topics is also being created to supplement the curriculum. Heather Burks, M.D., now a physician, submitted the poster for the institute presentation. ▪