Psychiatry Roundup: New Discoveries

United States Health Care Reform
The Affordable Care Act has been the biggest ship to turn around since the implementation of Medicaid and Medicare in 1965. In a Special Communication published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, President Barack Obama assesses the health care system before and after he took office and provides evidence for his contention that in the face of partisanship and complexities, positive change has resulted and should be pursued in the future.
JAMA, July 11, 2016

NIH Names Dr. Joshua Gordon Director of the National Institute of Mental Health
In his new role to be assumed in September, Joshua Gordon, MD, PhD will take the helm at NIMH in September. Dr. Gordon is Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center and Research Psychiatrist at the New York State Psychiatric Institute in New York. With an annual budget of approximately $1.5 billion, NIMH supports more than 2,000 research grants and contracts at universities and other institutions across the country and overseas.
NIMH, July 28, 2016

A Multi-Modal Parcellation of Human Cerebral Cortex
Close to a hundred new regions of the brain have been identified in this groundbreaking work that will open the door to "improved neuroanatomical precision for studies of the structural and functional organization of human cerebral cortex and its variation across individuals and in development, aging, and disease."
Nature, July 20, 2016
 

Diagnosis and Treatment of Marijuana Dependence
A review of criteria for cannabis dependence and treatment options, with a special focus on psychosocial approaches, such as “motivational enhancement therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and contingency management.”
British Columbia Medical Journal, July/August 2016

Can Attachment Theory Explain All Our Relationships?
Although research shows attachment patterns reveal themselves at age 1, emerging research shows adults with high attachment security "are more likely to be satisfied in marriage, experience less conflict, and be more resistant to divorce.“ Worth a read.
New York Magazine

What it Looks Like When You Chart Everything that Happens in Your Life
Wearables help us measure our steps, sleep/wake cycles, calories in and out, moods, and so on, to quantify our health and lives. That is so last year. Enter, emotions. Artists and designers have begun to use data to provide a picture of our feelings over time: "There might seem to be some sort of basic contradiction between the cold, calculated nature of data and charts, and something so alive and emotional as having a cry-fest or popping the question. But these projects provide a unique record of fleeting emotional experiences that deserve to be recorded at least as much as footsteps. Washington Post, July 14, 2016