By Rachel Becker June 16, 2020 Breanna Dixon doesn’t remember struggling to breathe when she overdosed, but her younger brother Joshua hasn’t forgotten the sound. At first, it sounded like heavy snoring coming from the TV room in the Dixon family home in Fontana, where the siblings were sheltering in place with their parents. It had been a month since the novel coronavirus forced California to a standstill , and Dixon, 28, was struggling. She had already overdosed twice before in the two...

Racism has a long and complicated history in the United States. Psychological research has shown that racism and racial discrimination—at both the interpersonal and systemic levels—are barriers to human development and psychological wellbeing. This page showcases research on racism, discrimination, and social justice to improve psychological outcomes for underrepresented communities. On This Page: Calls for Papers American Psychologist Special Issue APA Journals Article Spotlights Books...

Air pollution and heat exposure can lead to stillbirths and low birth rates, say researchers. AYANA BYRD JUN 24, 2020 11:45AM ET Pregnant people in the United States who are exposed to air pollution and heat exposure have significantly higher chances of having a pre-term birth, stillbirth, or a baby with low birth weight, according to a new study. Black people and those with asthma are particularly at risk. The report , “Association of Air Pollution and Heat Exposure With Preterm Birth, Low...

Medi-Cal has just published new policy making family therapy a covered benefit for children and adults with mental health disorders and for children who are at risk for mental health disorders. This will be especially relevant for children with ACEs. Under the guidance of the California Department of Health Care Services, the Medi-Cal fee-for-service program aims to provide health care services to about 13 million Medi-Cal beneficiaries. The Medi-Cal fee-for-service program adjudicates both...

By KQED Science, KQED, June 14, 2020 The coronavirus pandemic and the recent killing of George Floyd have brought longstanding racial inequities into sharp focus. One of those disparities concerns the high rate of coronavirus transmission among people of color. To talk about the intersection of race and health, KQED's Brian Watt spoke last week with California Surgeon General Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, who is known for her pioneering work on the role that childhood stress and trauma play on...

By Lishaun Francis June 23, 2020 The shelter-in-place orders due to COVID-19 ignited widespread alarm, anxiety and depression for adults concerned about interrupting their daily routines, falling ill and maintaining their economic stability. Simultaneously, children and youth were struggling with the same fears. School closures, disconnection from friends and an abrupt stop to community resources put additional strain on an already tenuous hold on mental wellness for many young people. In...

The pandemic has thrown into sharp relief the lonely, confined lives many immigrants in the United States were already living. EMILY KAPLAN MAY 27, 2020 One of the first times I met with Antonio, a middle-aged undocumented man in Queens, he was an hour late. When he arrived, panting, he explained that while he was on the subway, word spread among passengers that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were waiting at the next station. Antonio stayed on the train for several more stops—but...

by Nina Martin and Bernice Yeung April 1, 1:30 p.m. EDT Pregnant nurses and doctors say they are being forced to go to work with no formal accommodations or extra protections to keep them safe from the coronavirus, even though they are immunocompromised and data is still emerging about the risks of fetal transmission. Dozens of pregnant medical workers reached out to ProPublica, saying they were weighing whether to stay in jobs they view as dangerous or quit, which could add to the burdens...

From Human Impact Parters: A COVID-19 Public Health Response & Recovery Policy Platform Decades of underinvestment in our public infrastructure and neoliberal policies that gutted protections for working people, our healthcare, and our wider safety net are vividly exposing their consequences. People of color — most harshly Black, Latinx, and Native people — are disproportionately experiencing the consequences of these conditions. In this context, directly impacted communities are naming...

ZAIDEE STAVELY , April 23, 2020 The stay-at-home order has upended some of California’s most crucial educational and health services for infants and toddlers — home visits and early intervention services — at a time when families may need them the most. Home visiting programs send nurses, social workers and other trained professionals to the homes of low-income parents to give health and early education advice. They also help children meet milestones, like crawling, picking up objects,...

The COVID-19 pandemic will put many healthcare workers around the world in an unprecedented situation. How can healthcare workers cope during this time? Here are a few suggestions. Thanks to Scientific Advisory Committee members Carmen McLean and Katy Kamkar for creating this resource. Healthcare staff will likely be exposed to many potentially traumatic events and events leading to significant distress and moral suffering. As frontline workers, they are highly exposed to the virus itself.

We know this is a difficult time for everyone, especially those of you who are serving patients. Please join us for an 8-week webinar series featuring mental health and emotional wellness experts showing how health care providers can reduce personal stress during the COVID-19 outbreak. These webinars are held via Zoom on Thursdays from noon–1:00 p.m. Advance registration is required. Participants are encouraged to submit questions in advance to help our speakers address the full range of...