Each week brings new conversations about mental health, technology, and care. Between Sessions gathers what's worth your attention - so you can stay informed without adding to your workload.
📋 Field Update
A new NAMI/Ipsos poll finds 988 awareness has grown substantially since 2022, with three in four Americans aware and trust nearing 911's. Actual use stays lower, with cost and law enforcement fears cited as top barriers.
👉 Why it matters: If clients hesitate to use 988, a short conversation about what actually happens - no charge, law enforcement only in rare danger - can help.
🔒 Regulation & Compliance
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green signed two AI bills into law on July 14th: a chatbot safety measure and a deepfake bill. Illinois also enacted a law restricting AI's use in healthcare procedure approvals this week.
👉 Why it matters: If you practice in Hawaii or Illinois, or refer to AI tools there, review your compliance now - both states are moving fast on AI oversight this year.
🧠 Clinical Update
A JAMA Health Forum study of 546,000+ visits found just under 55% of patients engaged with open clinical notes, with lower engagement among younger patients, men, Spanish-speaking patients, and Black and Asian patients. Psychiatry notes saw higher adjusted engagement than primary care.
👉 Why it matters: If your notes are visible through a portal, don't assume silence means they've read them - a quick verbal recap at session's end helps.
🧩 AI & Mental Health
Meta began rolling out a feature this week that alerts supervising parents when a teen's Meta AI chat suggests suicide or self-harm risk, with every flagged chat passing through human review first. Live now in the US, UK, Australia, and Canada.
👉 Why it matters: This is the first major platform to route AI-detected mental health signals directly to a parent - useful if families ask about visibility into teen AI use.
💬 In the Room
CNBC reports on "maxxing" culture online - looksmaxxing, fibermaxxing, booksmaxxing - where ordinary self-improvement becomes something to optimize and accelerate. Clinicians quoted note looksmaxxing especially can shade into body dysmorphia, particularly among teenage boys.
👉 Why it matters: If clients mention "maxxing" language, ask what's driving the pursuit of optimization - passion and perfectionism can look similar but need different responses.
🏥 Practice & Business
Heard's fourth annual Financial State of Private Practice report, surveying nearly 2,000 clinicians, finds median revenue reached $80,412 in 2025, up from $68,222 - but expenses grew nearly as fast, up 45%. Fee-raisers saw a $20,000 revenue gap over those who didn't.
👉 Why it matters: Two-thirds of respondents already use AI in practice, mostly for documentation - a good moment to check whether your pricing and tech stack match where the field has moved.
📖 One Good Read
In a KevinMD essay, PA Cynthia McPherson argues "burnout" is the wrong word for what happens to clinicians - she calls it erosion, a slow, structural wearing-down that starts in training and doesn't stop on its own.
🫐 From Berries This Week
This week, Berries shared two conversations for your practice and your own leadership.
Former NBA head coach David Blatt joins Kym Tolson to talk about what actually holds people back under pressure, rebuilding confidence after a setback, and the real order between responsibility and accountability.
Billing consultant Susan Frager, MSW, breaks down what group practices consistently get wrong about supervisory billing for provisionally licensed clinicians - including which major insurers actually allow it and where audit risk hides.
🤝 Closing
Between chatbots learning caution and clinicians learning their own numbers, this week was a reminder that care and clarity are both built one careful step at a time.
As always, thank you for your truly important work.
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This newsletter is intended for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute clinical, legal, or regulatory guidance. Clinicians should rely on their professional judgment and applicable standards of care when integrating any technology into practice.