Mental Health
The Pump Handle
Category archives for Mental Health
New study highlights need for workplace interventions that reduce depression risk
Posted by The Pump Handle on November 26, 2012 Exploring reliable links between work and depression, which is a significant health and economic burden for individuals as well as society, is somewhat murky. But a new study published in the American Journal of Public Health used two analytic strategies to address such criticism.
Addressing veterans’ mental health
Posted by Liz Borkowski on November 12, 2012 In recent years, we’ve seen the federal government increase recognition of, and resources for, the mental health conditions that many veterans suffer from — but it hasn’t been enough.
Snapshot of call centre workers in Bangalore, India
Posted by Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH of George Washington University School of Public Health & Health Services on October 29, 2012 Workers employed at call centers in Bangalore, India often work in the middle of the night because their callers are largely from the U.S. and 11 time zones away. Their health may be adversely affected by their sleep-interrupting schedule, but also by the job requirements that strip them of their identity.
New study sheds light on the health effects of job insecurity
Posted by The Pump Handle on September 28, 2012 It’s not news that unemployment is bad for a person’s health. But it turns out that just the threat of unemployment is bad as well.
FAA’s pilot fatigue prevention rule could translate to other occupations
Posted by Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH of George Washington University School of Public Health & Health Services on December 21, 2011 Ms. Madeline Loftus, 24, was just one of the 50 individuals who lost their lives on February 12, 2009 when Continental Flight 3407 crashed in a neighborhood near Buffalo, NY. The NTSB investigation and a frightening PBS Frontline investigation called “Flying Cheap” identified airline industry practices that compromise pilots’ fitness for duty, including severe fatigue,…
My sister is not Death’s Grim Reaper
Posted by Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH of George Washington University School of Public Health & Health Services on November 14, 2011 She’s a hospice nurse. When I tell people her occupation, I typically receive a response like this: “She must be a very special person. I could never work in a place where people go to die.” Hospice is a “place,” and equating hospice to death, are just two of the misperceptions that hospice care providers…
Mental health research and a bikesharing system
Posted by Liz Borkowski on September 27, 2011 DC’s Capital Bikeshare program has had a fantastic first year. Stations full of sturdy red bikes have been popping up all over the city, and the system logged its one millionth ride one the eve of its first anniversary. Members can take a bike from any of the more than 100 stations, and the ride…
Memorial Day
Posted by Liz Borkowski on May 30, 2011 This Memorial Day, I haven’t just been thinking of those who died in combat, but also of those who’ve died because of combat. This morning’s NPR story about 23-year-old Ivan Lopez, who struggled with PTSD after returning home and then became the 14th Pennsylvania Guardsman since 2003 to die by his own hand, is just…
Excessive work hours: a serious safety hazards for workers
Posted by Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH of George Washington University School of Public Health & Health Services on September 3, 2010 Public Citizen, the American Medical Student Association (AMSA) and other worker advocates petitioned the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to issue a regulation limiting the number of hours worked by medical residents. The petitioners argue that the excessive hours expected by the employers (hospitals) of these physicians-in-training cause chronic sleep deprivation and stress, which…
The Global Toll of Depression
Posted by Liz Borkowski on August 27, 2010 Scicurious at Neurotic Physiology is publishing a bunch of “Back to Basics” posts that are well worth a read, and I found her series on depression particularly interesting. In Depression: Part 1, Scicurious explains why we should care about this disease: Right now, depression is thought to occur in 21% of women and 13% of…