One notable program developed through the work of John Piette, Ph.D., M.S., professor of health behavior and health education, utilizes mobile health tools to empower people in Colombia living with diabetes and depression to take greater control of their own health, while also connecting them with sources of follow-up care. The program, known as Llamada Saludable, or "Healthy Call," has found success through a number of public-private international partnerships --- and in building on decades of experience refining the model of delivery across a variety of healthcare settings around the world.

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As doctors across America encourage their patients to share concerns about depression, anxiety and other mental health conditions, a new study suggests physicians may be less likely to seek help for these symptoms themselves. In a survey of more than 2,100 female physicians who are also mothers, nearly half believed they met the definition for a mental illness at some point in their careers but had not sought treatment. Two-thirds reported that fear of stigma drove them to keep worries quiet. The study, led by Katherine Gold, M.D., M.S.W., M.S., a U-M assistant professor of family medicine and obstetrics and gynecology, suggests a need for better support for mental health conditions, and a modernization of state licensing standards, since some physicians may fear that seeking help will lead to restrictions on their medical licenses.

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Millions of people in prison or jail struggle with mental health issues and substance use disorders. And after they get out, those issues can increase their chances of another arrest if they don't receive treatment. But results from a new study based on data from the years after the Affordable Care Act (ACA)'s major insurance provisions went into effect finds that the rate of health insurance coverage rose significantly among people who in the past year had been arrested or were on probation or parole. Those with insurance coverage were more likely to get treatment for serious mental illness or alcohol use disorders, and those enrolled in Medicaid were also more likely to get treatment for depression or illicit drug use.

But the study, published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine by Tyler Winkelman, M.D., a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar at IHPI, and U-M colleagues, also finds that 1 in 3 people with recent justice involvement still lack health insurance, and those with private insurance lag in addiction treatment.

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On September 23, IHPI hosted members of its National Advisory Board at U-M's Ann Arbor campus. The board discussed plans for a number of strategic initiatives under development at the institute and learned about the ways IHPI supports the development of its early career faculty. U-M Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Martha E. Pollack, M.S.E., Ph.D., delivered opening remarks.

A team of U-M researchers used data from 60 Michigan hospitals to simulate what will happen when Medicare's new way of paying for hip and knee replacements in seniors takes full effect.

The bottom line: hospitals that take the most complex patients will suffer financially, because the new mandatory "bundled payment" program doesn't adjust its formula to account for patient complexity. But the researchers say there's still time to fix the program and avoid penalizing hospitals that care for the oldest and sickest patients. The study, published in the September issue of Health Affairs,was led by Chad Ellimoottil, M.D., M.S., U-M assistant professor of urology, and included IHPI members Brian Hallstrom, M.D., David Miller, M.D., M.P.H., Andrew Ryan, Ph.D., M.A., and James Dupree, M.D., M.P.H.

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Dying in America is an expensive process, with about one in four Medicare dollars going to care for people in their last year of life. But for African Americans and Hispanics, the cost of dying is far higher than it is for whites. And despite years of searching for the reason, no one has quite figured out why. A new study by a U-M Medical School team, recently published in the  Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, takes a deep-dive look at this expensive mystery with the most detailed study to date.

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Rebecca Cunningham, M.D., professor of emergency medicine and director of the U-M Injury Center, was appointed to the Michigan Prescription Drug and Opioid Abuse Commission.

The 21-member Commission, housed within the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, will review the Report of Findings and Recommendations for Action from the Michigan Prescription Drug and Opioid Abuse Task Force and develop and propose policies and an action plan to implement the recommendation from the report.

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