Recent horrendous incidents of mass shootings, often by people with obvious psychiatric illness or a documented history of mental illness, have focused attention on violence as a feature of some mental illnesses. In particular, the discussion has tied together guns and mental illness in the minds of the public and many policy makers and legislators. This webinar will focus on some of the actual data regarding mental illnesses and their link with violence. We’ll answer some common questions: which types of illnesses are more prone to violence? what kinds of violence? who are the most likely victims of violence arising from mental ilness, and the sometimes-role of guns in that violence. We will particularly focus on the most robust link between guns and mental illness–suicide. Finally, the importance of early intervention will be emphasized to prevent these rare, but terrible outcomes. There will be ample opportunity for questions and discussion.
Recipient of the National Exemplary Psychiatrist Award² and named ³Mental Health Professional of the Year² in 2013 by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) , Dr. Komrad is a psychiatrist on the clinical and teaching staff of Sheppard Pratt Hospital and the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Maryland and on the teaching faculty of Oceania University of Medicine in Samoa. He earned his undergraduate degree in molecular biophysics at Yale University, his M.D. degree at Duke Medical School, and trained in internal medicine and psychiatry at Johns Hopkins.