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Early evidence for paliperidone palmitate under real-world conditions is encouraging. However, caution should be taken until additional research substantiates the findings with greater certainty.

Background Long-acting injectable antipsychotics (LAIs) are an essential maintenance treatment option for individuals with schizophrenia or bipolar I disorder (BP-I). This report summarizes a roundtable discussion on the impact of COVID-19 on the mental healthcare landscape and use of LAIs for individuals with schizophrenia or BP-I. Methods Ten experts and stakeholders from diverse fields of healthcare participated in a roundtable discussion on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, treatment challenges, and gaps in healthcare for individuals with schizophrenia or BP-I, informed by a literature search. Results Individuals with schizophrenia or BP-I are at increased risk of COVID-19 infection and increased risk of mortality after COVID-19 diagnosis. LAI prescriptions decreased early on in the pandemic, driven by a decrease in face-to-face consultations. Mental healthcare services are adapting with increased use of telehealth and home-based treatment. Clinical workflows to provide consistent, in-person LAI services include screening for COVID-19 exposure and infection, minimizing contact, and ensuring mask-wearing by individuals and staff. The importance of continued in-person visits for LAIs needs to be discussed so that staff can share that information with patients, their caregivers, and families. A fully integrated, collaborative-care model is the most important aspect of care for individuals with schizophrenia or BP-I during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusions The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of a fully integrated collaborative-care model to ensure regular, routine healthcare contact and access to prescribed treatments and services for individuals with schizophrenia and BP-I.

In recent years, social workers have begun to focus on services intended to help keep families together. This article describes evaluation studies of family preservation and reunification services provided to families of status offenders across the state of Florida. Logistic regression methods were used to identify correlates offamily preservation and family reunification in data from 4,195 families served by 23 Florida Network of Youth and Family Services programs during fiscal year 1989-1990. Statistically significant models were identified for both family preservation and family reunification efforts. Then data from families served by Florida Network agencies during fiscal years 1988-1989 (2,065 families) and 1990-1991 (3,931 families) were analyzed in a model validation study. Several demographic, client history, and service variables were identified as correlates of family preservation and family reunification. The implications of these results for the efforts of social workers to preserve and reunify families are discussed.