Mental Health Awareness Month: A Closer Look at Risk, Recognition, and Responsibility

May marks Mental Health Awareness Month, offering a necessary moment to reflect on how we recognize, respond to, and support mental health needs across the care continuum. For clinicians and risk managers, this isn’t just about acknowledgment—it’s about taking meaningful action in the face of a harsh and complex system.

To honor this awareness month, we’re featuring a curated collection of case-based insights, expert perspectives, and clinician support tools that highlight the risks of burnout, substance use, and emotional strain—both in patients and in providers. These stories bring to light critical gaps that can lead to harm and the strategies that can help prevent it.

Featured Content

Case Study: Inadequate Screening of Patient with Substance Use Disorder Has Fatal Ending – A sobering reminder of how missed assessments can have tragic consequences.

Podcast: Getting Clinicians in Lawsuits to Care for Themselves is Hard – A conversation about the emotional toll of malpractice litigation and how institutions can better support their providers.

Article: The Case for Comprehensive Burnout Solutions – A call for systems-level approaches to clinician wellness, moving beyond individual resilience.

CRICO Claims Resource Site: Emotional support and coping strategies for clinician defendants are available (login required): Log in here

Mental health care doesn’t just belong in psych units—it intersects with every specialty, every shift, and every setting. We invite you to dig into the lessons learned and consider how you can better support patients, your organization, and yourself by addressing mental health risk more proactively throughout the year.