Pleased to observe an increasing presence of international attendees at this year’s ISPN conference, I also noted our common concerns across the globe: suicide of young people, inadequate access to treatment for mental health problems, and insufficient numbers of psychiatric-mental health nurses. Those of us who reside in North America were privileged to learn from our colleagues who traveled to the North Carolina conference site from Japan, India, UK, Saudi Arabia, Ghana, and other locales. I want to share with you some highlights that are particularly relevant to the clinical practice and research of psychiatric-mental health nurses everywhere.
The opening keynote address by Susan Hagedorn, a nurse documentary film maker, inspired all of us to tell our stories to the world—and to help our patients not only tell their stories but also make meaning from, and critique, their stories. Short films were shown that illustrated the powerful insights gained by participants in Hagedorn’s Nurse Story workshops (see www.nurstory.org for examples). Sharing a bit of her own personal story with us, she described an early experiment with children on an inpatient unit to whom she gave Polaroid cameras. Captured by the potential of visual media, she attended film school to acquire professional expertise and skills of film making that she later applied in documenting events such as a strike by Appalachian nurses on behalf of their patients.
Telling his own story, of his long career as a psychiatric nurse, Norman Keltner helped the younger conference attendees grasp what it was like when ECT engendered grand mal seizures and was administered in assembly-line fashion to the patients in the huge mental institutions of the past. Keltner reviewed the early advances that were made in psychopharmacology, and his own contributions by writing influential textbooks and journal articles on psychopharmacology. He also reflected on the ideas of Marx, Freud, and Frankl, explaining his preference for Frankl. For a few minutes, he bemoaned the downside of our ever-present technology and the loss of social capital (“every advancement has a downside”). Sprinkled throughout his talk, however, was his legendary playful humor, and his view of the societal obsession with technology was certainly not as dark as that of Oliver Sacks (see Thomas, 2019, editorial in issue 7).
Energetic and engaging keynote speaker Kenya Beard challenged the audience members to consider our implicit biases, which prevent equity in health care delivery, along with the oft-cited social and economic determinants of health (poverty, pollution, et cetera). A vignette in which a mother was blamed for the death of her child was used to depict implicit bias (the unconscious attribution of negative qualities to certain individuals because of their color or other features). Good questions that we can all ask ourselves, especially in ambiguous and highly emotional situations: What do I believe is happening in this situation? What don’t I know? What is an alternate perspective? What implicit bias might be influencing my thoughts? What is another way that I could respond?
A hot topic at the conference was CBD oil, which many laypersons have begun to use for a wide variety of purposes, including relief of anxiety, insomnia, and aches and pains of all kinds. In the USA presently, CBD oil is being heavily promoted and marketed, and is readily available at retail stores, even gas stations. Presenter Marian Newton reviewed the evidence of its efficacy, which is scanty, except for one FDA-approved drug for children with seizures. Its off-label use in psychiatry is not yet supported by research, and conference attendees were encouraged to consult the FDA web page and continue to monitor the scientific literature.
Child and adolescent bipolar depression, mental health of women truck drivers, telehealth, interprofessional education, transgender mental health care, and stigma reduction were among other topics explored in paper and poster presentations at the conference—not an exhaustive list. It was encouraging to learn that the number of student members of ISPN is increasing, vitalizing the lifeblood of the organization. As always, I was impressed by the professionalism and dedication of my psychiatric-nursing colleagues. My interactions with those of you in rural clinics, private practice, corrections, urban hospitals, graduate programs, and all the other venues where you practice and conduct research, never fail to inspire. Returning to the theme of stories, as introduced by keynoter Hagedorn, I invite you to share your stories with Issues in Mental Health Nursing. I look forward to receiving your manuscripts.