University students and mental health

Among the consequences of COVID-19 is its adverse impact on the mental health and wellbeing among university students in the United States.  Today’s students deal with many challenges from coursework, relationships and adjustments to campus life, to economic strain, social injustice, mass violence and various forms of loss related to the pandemic. In a 2021 survey, nearly 75 percent of college presidents listed students’ mental health as their most pressing issue. And key findings from a report released this year by non-profit Mental Health America shows more than 10 percent of young people are experiencing depression that severely impairs their ability to function at school or work, at home, with family or in their social life.

Many school leaders have started to think outside the box about how to help. They’re finding ways to incorporate a broader culture of wellness into their policies, systems and day-to-day campus life. In this episode of “Ideas to Innovation Season 2” from Clarivate, we speak with Lisa O’Donnell, assistant professor for the department of social work at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. An expert in bipolar disorder and severe mental illness, she brings a compelling perspective to the topic of university students and mental health. Lisa has served as a clinician for the state of Michigan for more than 18 years, primarily working with adults who have severe mental illness as well as anxiety disorders and OCD-related disorders.

For information on subscriptions to mental health e-books from ProQuest, part of Clarivate, go to https://bit.ly/proquestmentalhealth