Ohio Mental Health Care Summit (Annual Psychiatric Update) – April 18-19, 2026

The Ohio Psychiatric Physicians Association (OPPA) will host its Ohio Mental Health Care Clinical Summit (Annual Psychiatric Update) on April 18-19, 2026 at the Hilton Polaris, in Columbus. The 2026 meeting’s theme is: Bridging Worlds: The Art and Science of Modern Psychiatry. Join some of the nation’s leading psychiatric experts who will be speaking on a variety of cutting-edge, evidence-based care for individuals with mental illness, including Gut Microbiome and Mental Health, GLP-1 and Psychiatric Illnesses, Bridging Therapy and AI, and much more.

The 2026 meeting promises to be an exceptional educational opportunity, fostering collaboration and knowledge-sharing among professionals at all levels. Whether you are a new or seasoned psychiatrist, an advanced practice nurse, physician assistant, emerging researcher, or a student passionate about mental health, the 2026 Ohio Mental Health Care Summit will provide valuable learning experiences and networking opportunities to enhance your practice.

Use code TOC2026 to receive $100 off the non-member rate. Register today – rates go up on April 1.

Opioid Deaths Dropped in 2024, and Ohio’s Decline was Even Steeper

Opioid overdose deaths in the U.S. fell sharply from 2023 to 2024, driven largely by decreases in deaths involving fentanyl, according to a new KFF report.

Nationally, the total number of deaths dropped about 32% from about 79,000 in 2023 to 54,000 in 2024, the report said.

Ohio’s drop was even steeper, with deaths falling about 45% from nearly 4,000 in 2023 to about 2,200 in 2024, KFF said. The state’s opioid overdose death rate was 20.1 per 100,000 population in 2024.

West Virginia in 2024 had the highest rate (38.6 per 100,000) among U.S. states. Nebraska had the lowest rate at 3.3 per 100,000 population.

Fentanyl was involved in most opioid overdose deaths in 2024. Despite this, declines in fentanyl-involved deaths drove the overall drop in opioid deaths. Deaths involving other opioids, including prescription opioids and heroin, also declined but to a lesser extent.

CAMS and AMSR Training Opportunities

The Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation (OSPF), through a SAMHSA Garrett Lee Smith (GLS) Youth Suicide Prevention Grant, has the opportunity to provide free or reduced training for clinical staff at your agency. OSPF is currently searching for provider agencies/hospital systems that are interested in training a large number of staff for a full-day training. Opportunities are limited at the discretion of OSPF. Currently, OSPF has the limited capacity to host the following trainings at your agency:

Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) training:

• CAMS is an evidenced-based treatment framework used to assess suicidality and specifically treat suicide risk. CAMS 3-part training provides mental health professionals (and other relevant professionals) with essential knowledge in using the CAMS framework to collaborate with patients in the treatment of their suicidal drivers.
• 7.0 CEs for Ohio Counselors, Social Workers, and Psychologists will be provided after completing the entire training.

Assessing and Managing Suicide Risk (AMSR) training:

• Assessing and Managing Suicide Risk (AMSR?) for Health and Behavioral Health Professionals Working in Outpatient Settings (AMSR-Outpatient) formulation model and helps clinicians feel confident navigating challenging conversations about suicide. AMSR offers key strategies for providing compassionate care to people at risk for suicide.
• Participants who fully complete this training will also be eligible for 6.5 hours of continuing education credits from APA and NASW. As these are National-level CEs, you will need to check with your respective Ohio licensing board to see if they will accept your CEU certificate awarded after the training.

If you are interested contact Austin Lucas at [email protected]

Experts Warn New Graduate Student Loan Limits Could Hurt Health Care Pipeline

The U.S. Department of Education is considering changing the definition of who is considered a "professional" student. Experts say that could have dramatic consequences for the health care industry.

When Congress passed H.R. 1 or the One Big Beautiful Bill Act last summer, included in the bill was a slate of new provisions aimed at updating the federal student aid system. The most contentious of these changes was putting new limits on how much graduate students can borrow in federal loans to fund their education. Students pursuing master’s degrees will have a borrowing limit of $20,500 a year and $100,000 over a lifetime. Those working toward a professional degree — now limited to 11 specific degree paths — will have a higher annual limit of $50,000 and $200,000 in total in federal loans. Those degree paths include medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, optometry, law, veterinary medicine, osteopathic medicine, podiatry, chiropractic, theology and clinical psychology. Critics worry this could worsen health care workforce shortages by deterring other students from pursuing certain advanced degrees. The new rule is expected to go into effect on July 1 after a public comment period. The Ohio Council working with the National Council for Mental Wellbeing submitted comments objecting to the proposed rule changes.