The Mental Health Section encourages research, policies, and practices focusing on prevention, health promotion, social justice, and human rights. We are interested in emerging best practices, the organization and financing of services, workforce development, approaches to implementation, and bringing innovation to scale. The Mental Health Section maintains a focus on policy and practice that affect marginalized groups whose opportunities to thrive are diminished by mental illness, developmental disorders, and co-occurring behavioral and physical health challenges.  We welcome evidence-based abstracts that address these issues within a public mental health framework, and consider quantitative, mixed, and rigorous qualitative methods; including case studies in policy implementation, community-based, and stakeholder engaged approaches.

The Mental Health Section is committed to supporting the development of its student members. We strongly encourage student abstracts and each year honor one student paper with the Kenneth Lutterman Award for Graduate and Professional Student Research. Awardees are honored at our annual reception with a plaque and provided a complementary conference registration. Details about how to self-nominate and submit your abstract for this Award are found at the end of this Call for Abstracts.

Suggested Topics for Submission

We look forward to creating an educational program for the APHA Annual Meeting that enhances attendees’ knowledge and application of cutting-edge research and policy in their respective disciplines. The topic areas below broadly represent issues critical to mental health that are of interest to Section members. Under each topic we have included examples of relevant content for guidance when submitting your abstract; these are not meant to be an exhaustive list within each topic. Please choose the topic area that most closely fits your abstract. 

We understand that the topics listed are not mutually exclusive and that your submission may span multiple topics. Accepted abstracts will be grouped with abstracts of complementary content to create sessions.

• Behavioral Health Workforce Development
  
  • Integration of peer and paraprofessionals to expand care.
  • Addressing training, funding, and retention challenges.
  • Enhancing delivery of evidence-based practices through task shifting.
• Climate and Mental Health
  
  • Community resilience and preparedness for climate-related disasters.
  • Mental health impacts of direct and indirect climate hazards.
  • Effects of economic and migration stressors due to climate change.
• Community Support, Social Connection, and Mental Health
  
  • Building resilience through community preparedness and coalitions.
  • Strengthening social connectedness and violence prevention.
  • Systemic strategies to address mental health needs.
• Families and Children across the Lifespan
  
  • Perinatal, postpartum, and children’s mental health services.
  • Support for transition-age youth and families.
  • Addressing ageism and its impact on mental health.
• Global Mental Health
  
  • Addressing mental health issues among immigrant and refugee populations.
  • Closing the global mental health treatment gap through policies and practices.
  • Promoting bidirectional learning in global mental health approaches.
• Mental Health Policy and Services
  
  • Coordination among health authorities, providers, and communities.
  • Innovations to improve access, engagement, and equity in services.
  • Enforcement of parity compliance and integration of behavioral health services.
• Mental Health and Substance Use
  
  • Integrated treatment for dual diagnoses.
  • Prevention of substance use in mental health treatment contexts.
  • Developing and evaluating program performance measures.
• Social Determinants of Mental Health
  
  • Interventions for vulnerable populations to promote behavioral wellness.
  • Research on prevalence, disparities, and upstream factors.
  • Advancing methods for studying social determinants of mental health.
• Stigma, Discrimination, and Trauma
  
  • Combating stigma and reframing mental health as a social justice issue.
  • Implementing trauma-informed approaches and addressing racial trauma.
  • Investigating coping mechanisms for stigma, discrimination, and trauma.
• Suicide Prevention, Intervention, and Crisis Response
  
  • Outreach and support for high-risk groups and survivors.
  • Expanding crisis response, mobile services, and prevention efforts.
  • Funding and improving access to suicide prevention initiatives.
• Technology, Social Media, and Mental Health
  
  • Examining impacts of technology and social media on mental health.
  • Leveraging technology to improve service access and engagement.
  • Innovations in technology-based mental health interventions.

HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR ABSTRACT

Abstracts must be submitted electronically through the APHA abstract management web site (see “start abstract submission” link below). The web site provides complete instructions on the length and format of abstracts.  You may also contact the Program Chairs, Silicia Lomax (lomaxs@sas.upenn.edu) and Dr. Kaleea Lewis (Lewiskal@health.missouri.edu) for clarification or assistance.

Abstracts may be submitted for a 15-20-minute oral presentation (that will be grouped by the Program Planners into an oral session), a poster, or as part of a full 90 minute “Special Session” that is constructed on a topic chosen by the submitters. Instructions for Special Sessions are given at the end of this Call for Abstracts.

 ABSTRACT FORMAT

 Please use one of the following two abstract formats that best fits your submission:

1) Typically used for quantitative and qualitative research

•  Background: Study objectives, hypothesis, or a description of the problem
•  Methods: Study design, including a description of participants, procedures, measures, and   appropriate statistical analyses; dates of data collection
•  Results: Specific results in summary form
•  Conclusions: Description of the main outcome of the study and implications for research, policy, or practice

2) For description and analysis of community initiatives, policy or program implementation studies, innovative strategies designed to impact disparities, and other descriptive or exploratory research

•  Background/Context: Why Now? What challenge is this policy, program, initiative, or strategy designed to address?
•  Description: Design of the project, policy, service, or advocacy program
•  Lessons Learned: A brief description of results
•  Recommendations/Implications: Implications for research, policy, or practice, including recommendations and next steps

Abstracts are limited to 350 words or less.

 Review Criteria

All abstracts are blind reviewed by three reviewers using the following criteria:  

1. Adherence to specified abstract format with all sections complete
2. Innovation and timeliness of the issue
3. Relevance to the APHA meeting theme
4. Rigor, clarity, and appropriateness of methods/logic model to the question
5. Issues, methods, approaches, or conclusions are person-centered or informed by stakeholders
6. Clarity of results/lessons learned. For work in progress, state preliminary findings or list results that will be presented.
7. Significance of findings/implications for research, policy, or practice
8. Overall Quality
9. Compliance with continuing education credit requirements.

Incomplete abstracts will not be reviewed. 

 

FINAL PROGRAM

The final program will be designed based on peer-reviewed evaluations of the abstract proposals with consideration for available time and space, the program theme, diversity of topics, and topics being presented by invited speakers. The Mental Health Section program will include: 1) poster and oral sessions compiled from the highest scored, individually contributed abstracts, 2) Special Sessions that are fully compiled and coordinated by submitting parties; 3) invited sessions and roundtables on important topics identified by section leadership.  We try to honor your preference for an oral or poster session, but Program Planners may reassign abstracts to make the best use of the limited and highly competitive oral sessions.

Acceptance notices will be sent to abstract authors in the summer. Waitlisted abstracts may be invited to participate if accepted abstracts are withdrawn. 

If your presentation is accepted, you will be asked to register to attend the Annual Meeting. If you’re not already, please consider becoming a member of APHA and joining the Mental Health Section. As our membership grows, so does our number of presentation slots, increasing our ability to offer you a space in an oral or poster session. 

Neither APHA nor the Mental Health Section provides financial support for presenter attendance at the Annual Meeting.

 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR SPECIAL SESSION PROPOSALS

Proposals for Special Sessions (90 minutes in length) may be submitted. Each individual abstract for the 3-4 papers to be included in a Special Session must be submitted electronically via the online conference submission AND a one-page overview of the proposed Session MUST be submitted directly to the planners via email by the abstract deadline.

We encourage Special-Sessions to allow time for discussion and questions from the audience.  Consider a point/counterpoint format or a panel discussion that directly engages the audience. Highlight either of these formats in the Overview and consider the time required to do this effectively.

If the session will include the release of any new reports or data, this should be mentioned in the proposal, along with any plans to promote the session to news media.

 Include in your One-page Overview

• Title of the Special Session
• Names of lead facilitator and the contact person (may be the same individual)
• Brief overview of the rationale for the Session including how each abstract contributes to the session topic
• List, in presentation order, each individual abstract title and presenter’s name as they were submitted to APHA; and the time you plan to allocate for each presentation and discussion period.

Submit each individual abstract separately to the APHA electronic abstract submission process. In the "Comments to Organizers" box for each abstract submission, include the following language: “This abstract should be considered as part of (title of Special Session).”

All abstracts are reviewed on their individual merit; the acceptance of a Special Session does not guarantee that all abstracts submitted for that session will be accepted. Unless instructed otherwise, the Mental Health Section Program Committee will consider the individual abstracts from any rejected Special Session for the program and will assign them to the session(s) where they fit best.

If accepted, organizers and presenters will be requested to complete a conflict-of-interest disclosure.

KENNETH LUTTERMAN AWARD FOR GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL STUDENT RESEARCH

Each year, the Mental Health Section recognizes an excellent student paper with the Kenneth Lutterman Award. You must self-nominate. Authors of qualifying abstracts are invited to write a full paper to be considered for the Award. APHA conference registration is covered for the award recipient and the awardee receives a plaque and recognition at our annual reception. Additionally, Lutterman Awardees receive a complementary student member for the following year. To place your abstract in consideration for this award, follow these directions:

When you submit your abstract, self-nominate for the Kenneth Lutterman Award in two places in the APHA online abstract submission webpage:

1.  In the “Step 2 (title)” section, locate “Presenting Author and Awards Submission. Consider this paper for the following award.” Check the “Ken Lutterman Award” drop-down box.  AND
2. In the “Comments to Organizers” open-field box, include a note stating that you are self-nominating for the Kenneth Lutterman Award.

If your abstract qualifies, you will be asked to submit a full 10-page paper for the Lutterman student paper award by in the Spring for review by the Awards Committee. At that time, you must verify that the submitted work was done as a student enrolled in a graduate or professional degree program, that you are a member of the APHA Mental Health Section, and your expected date of degree completion.

ERIC BOTHWELL AWARD 

The Eric D. Bothwell Award in American Indian and Alaska Native Men’s Health recognizes and encourages research focusing on the physical and/or mental health of AI/AN boys and men. More details can be found at https://bothwellawards.org/

CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDIT

For a session to be eligible for Continuing Education Credit:  All abstracts must be free of trade and/or commercial product names AND must include at least one MEASURABLE SINGLE outcome. 

Presenting authors must complete and sign the Conflict-of-Interest Disclosure Form provided during the online abstract submission.  This includes a relevant qualification statement that specifically justifies their presentation of the material.  Please note that a general statement of the author’s training or degrees earned, or a statement that the author is the Principal Investigator/Project Coordinator for the study are not adequate qualification statements.

EXAMPLE: I am qualified because I have worked in this area for the last six years. I was a member of the team that conceptualized this project and have been actively involved in all aspects of its execution, including the evaluation of outcomes described in this presentation.

During the online submission process, authors must select at least one continuing education core area that their abstract addresses. You will be asked to choose at least one or up to 6 areas that your presentation will address.

Contact Mighty Fine at mighty.fine@apha.org  if you have any questions concerning continuing education.

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Ready?

Program Planner Contact Information:

Silicia Lomax, MPH
lomaxs@sas.upenn.edu


and

Kaleea Lewis, PhD
Lewiskal@health.Missouri.edu