News and Insights for Psychiatric Pharmacists

Parents and caregivers are often the first to notice when something feels different. Changes in mood, sleep, appetite or behavior may signal a young person needs support. #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth #SeeThePerson

The National Institute of Mental Health is an excellent resource for broshures and fact sheets on mental health disorders for patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals. Printed materials can even be ordered free of charge!

Findings from this study suggest that restrictive policies on antidepressant prescribing are unlikely to align with public sentiment and may risk exacerbating existing inequities in care.

Practice, practice, practice! The 150-question mock exam lets you test your knowledge, pacing, and endurance before sitting for the BCPP certification exam. #BCPP #AAPP #examprep #psychpharmacy

AAPP's pharmacist toolkit on Xylazine is intended to highlight both the evidence base available as well as strategies of clinical decision making used by expert clinicians.

LGBTQ+ young people who reported living in very accepting communities attempted suicide at less than a third of the rate of those who did not.

Symptom-based dosing decreased time to medical readiness for discharge compared with a scheduled opioid taper approach among infants cared for with ESC.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently announced efforts to curb psychiatric overprescribing at a MAHA Institute summit on mental health and overmedicalization. Per the press release, “HHS agencies are bringing together their collective expertise and aligning to evaluate prescription patterns for psychiatric medications, their benefits and potential harms, and elevate the role of nonmedication treatments and scalable, evidence-based solutions to improve mental health.” Read on to learn more about AAPP actions.

The Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS) is now accepting applications for the 2027 BPS Ambassador Program. Board-certified pharmacists interested can apply until June 12, 2026.

The incidence and risk elevation of incident mental disorders in cancer patients vary based on sex, cancer type, time since diagnosis and type of mental disorder.

Referring patients to behavioral health specialists for CBT and/or prescribing recommended pharmacotherapy with Collaborative Care Management can help to reduce patient morbidity and improve functioning.

The link between specialty-care-only policies and lower diversion and overdose risk is not supported by the reviewed literature.

These data indicate a need to identify and disseminate successful hospital-based strategies to increase prescribing of MAUD.

Actigraphy appears to be a feasible objective tool for sleep assessment in SUDs, though additional studies across diverse substances are needed.

Interactive sVMs can effectively dispense HR items and connect individuals to services, thereby having the potential to improve individual and public health. Contextual factors, such as location, may influence utilization.

Single-item patient-reported outcome measures are pragmatic tools for implementing measurement-based care in substance use treatment.

These results demonstrate substantial missed opportunities for MOUD treatment during pregnancy, highlighting the need for targeted interventions to improve evidence-based perinatal OUD care.

This cross-sectional study found a substantial increase in the percentage of individuals with OUD who received MOUD among almost all states.

Medicaid managed care plans located in Republican-leaning states were less likely to be subject to state requirements governing coverage and prior authorization of SUD treatment medications, with the exception of methadone, and were also less likely to align with requirements when imposed by states.

This SAMHSA advisory outlines evidence-based strategies to integrate physical and behavioral health services, improving outcomes, reducing costs, and enhancing quality of life.

Orphines are 10 times more dangerous than fentanyl and are showing up in street drugs within the US.

This study evaluated the efficacy of semaglutide once-weekly in treatment-seeking patients with alcohol use disorder and comorbid obesity.

This report examines how existing CIC programs operate, funding strategies used to sustain their work and offers insights to help strengthen and expand CIC models nationwide.

Findings of this meta-analysis suggest that ketamine may be considered an off-label treatment for those at risk of suicidal behaviors or those not responding to other treatments for depression.

In this large population based cohort, prenatal exposure to benzodiazepines or Z-hypnotics was not associated with an increased risk of psychiatric disorders in offspring.

AAPP member Farah Khorassani explains her vital role on the care team.

The 2026 AAPP Outcomes Research Grants provide $15,000 each to support retrospective studies on bipolar, clozapine, and MOUD. Mark your calendar for the Q&A session June 30, 2026! Get your questions answered and learn how to advance your research. #PsychPharm

The AAPP Practice Expansion Grants provide up to $25,000 to support innovative integration of psychiatric pharmacists. Mark your calendar for the Q&A session May 18, 2026! Get your questions answered and learn how you can make an impact. #PsychPharm

AAPP's newest member profile showcases psychiatric pharmacist impact through low barrier outreach showcasing how pharmacists can deliver medications and  psychiatric and substance use disorder care to underserved individuals.

Mental health conditions are medical conditions and people living with them are more than a diagnosis. This #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth, let’s lead with understanding. Learn more: https://www.samhsa.gov/mental-health #SeeThePerson #MHAM2026

If you missed any of the previous Resident Journal Club presentations or would like to revisit a session, recordings are available for you to listen and review at your convenience. Once registered, you can access the recordings, presentations, and article links on the Journal Club page.

Planning to sit for the BCPP exam? We've got resources! #BCPP #AAPP #examprep #psychpharmacy

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the drug Auvelity this week for the treatment of agitation in adults with Alzheimer's dementia. The extended-release tablet is the first FDA-approved medication for this condition that is not an antipsychotic.

While there has been an increase in funding for and use of AI in health care in recent years, public opinion on AI’s role in providing accurate health information remains mixed.

The findings of this study suggest no increased risk of long term adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes among children with prenatal exposure to buprenorphine versus methadone, further supporting buprenorphine as a safe treatment option for opioid use disorder during pregnancy.

Evidence suggests that the use of nicotine-containing e-cigarettes supports cigarette smoking cessation and reduction among individuals who smoke cigarettes regularly.

AAPP opposes the SAMHSA policy change to prohibit the use of federal funds for the purchase of “fentanyl test strips or any other substance test kits intended for use by people using drugs.” Test strips are an essential component of overdose prevention interventions. Access AAPP’s Policy Statement “The funding and delivery of harm reduction services” to support your advocacy.

AAPP has issued a statement opposing the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) policy change to prohibit the use of federal funds for the purchase of “fentanyl test strips or any other substance test kits, including xylazine and medetomidine test strips, intended for use by people using drugs.” Restricting access to this tool risks reversing progress in overdose prevention at a time when synthetic adulterants continue to drive morbidity and mortality. Evidence supports the importance of clinicians, first responders, and individuals having access to test strips as an essential component of overdose prevention interventions. Access AAPP’s Policy Statement “The funding and delivery of harm reduction services” for further information and to support your own advocacy in this area.

Over a 5-year horizon, the treatment strategy initiating with paliperidone emerged as a favorable LAI option, providing the highest QALY gains at comparable or lower costs than the other LAI-initiating strategies.

In our newest member profile showcasing psychiatric pharmacist impact, learn how Dr. Jacky Parizher works as an outreach pharmacist providing low barrier treatment for opioid use disorder.

This new proceedings of a workshop summarizes emerging scientific insights into brain-body communication pathways, and the implications for therapeutic development, public health, and overall well-being.

I was given the amazing opportunity to co-lead a platform presentation with Dr. Alexa Flood at the RX and Illicit Drug Summit (RX Summit) in Nashville. Through the support of the AAPP Ambassador Program, we were able to present to nearly 700 attendees and lead the second-most attended presentation of the conference. With 4 days of programming and 2165 attendees, we are confident that this impressive attendance allowed us to bring great visibility to this important topic and the psychiatric pharmacist's value as a member of the substance use disorder treatment team.

BPS received a petition to recognize Pharmacogenomics as a BPS specialty certification and has opened the public comment period. The comment period will close on June 3, 2026 at 5:00 PM ET.

Stream this expert-led discussion on the expanding role of digital therapeutics in treating mental health conditions. Watch the recording and stay ahead in this fast-evolving field! Visit the course page to watch the webinar or learn more and register.