Improving Mental Health Through Reliable Research
Mental illness affects one in four Americans, yet it's often absent from public conversations about health care. With May being Mental Health Month, it's an appropriate time to help raise awareness and build support for the 57 million Americans living with mental health issues.
Many patients and those who care for them don't have the information they need to make the best decision for how to manage their particular health or healthcare challenge, including when that situation involves mental illness. We at PCORI are working to change that through research designed to answer the questions that matter most to patients. After all, when patients, their caregivers and clinicians have evidence they trust, they can make better decisions about the care options likely to yield the outcomes most important to them.
We believe that this kind of research begins by working with the healthcare community to identify areas where patients, caregivers and clinicians need more useful, relevant information. For example, parents want to know which treatment options are safe and effective for young children with disruptive behavior disorders. We don't have the answer, but that's where we can help -- by funding new studies designed to find the answers.
We at PCORI already have started examining mental health questions as part of our research portfolio – mental health is the direct or a related focus of 19 of the studies funded through our pilot projects and our first two rounds of primary research funding.
Researchers in Arkansas, for example, are testing innovative ways to deliver mental health information to underserved areas of the rural South. In Maryland, investigators hope to improve care for children with mental illness by providing families with a professional health partner who can answer treatment questions. An Illinois project is undertaking a patient-centered quality assessment of psychiatric inpatient environments. And a Pennsylvania study is looking at two models for improving care for adults with serious mental illness.
At least two projects focus on mental health services delivered in primary care settings. This is an area of great need where we think PCORI-funded research can help improve clinical practice. In New York, researchers are working with community health centers to increase cancer screening and reduce depression among low-income minority women. And in California, researchers are looking at how community engagement can help eliminate disparities in outcomes for persons with depression by improving information and services in inner-city communities of color.
We expect to fund many more research projects in the coming year and, as with all of our work, are looking to the broad healthcare community for guidance on the questions that need to be studied.
Indeed, we're counting on the community to participate in our work and ensure the studies we fund provide patients and clinicians with the answers and information they need. Whether a project focuses on mental health or any other health condition, thoughtful public input is the key to our success.
To suggest a question for PCORI to study, or explore other ways to get involved in PCORI, visit Get Involved.
This article is adapted from a series of articles distributed nationally for PCORI by NewsUSA to raise awareness of PCORI’s work and the opportunities for individuals and organizations to be involved. You can read previous stories in the series through the links below:
- Seeking Better Answers to Your Health Care Questions
- Patients Have New Role In Health Research
- Transforming Health Research on the High Plains
Beal served as PCORI’s Deputy Executive Director and Chief Officer for Engagement from November 2011 – March 2014.