Improving Health and Reducing Premature Mortality in People with Severe Mental Illness (R01)

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People with severe mental illness (SMI) die from the same causes as those in the general population, e.g., heart disease, diabetes, cancer, stroke, and pulmonary disease. However, these diseases are more common in people with SMI and lead to earlier death. The modifiable health risk factors that contribute to these diseasessmoking, obesity, hypertension, metabolic disorder, substance use, low physical activity, poor fitness and dietare also more common and have an earlier onset in people with SMI. Side effects of psychiatric medications, which may include weight gain and metabolic disorder, add to these health risks. Effective interventions to reduce these common modifiable health risk factors exist for the general population, however, they are generally unavailable to people with SMI and evidence is sparse on how to bring them to this population. This FOA will support R01 grants of up to five years for rigorous effectiveness testing of innovative services interventions designed to reduce the prevalence and magnitude of common modifiable health risk factors related to shortened lifespan in adults with severe mental illness (SMI), as well as in children and youth with serious emotional disturbances (SED).

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