Advancement Of Psychiatry Research Articles

Physical Restraint in Acute Care Psychiatry: A Humanistic and Realistic Nursing Approach

Despite the many advances in psychiatry, violence in acute care settings continues and may be increasing. This is particularly problematic, considering the desire of mental health professionals to attain the goal of a restraint-free environment. Respecting the inherent worth, dignity, and autonomy of the patient is necessary if a therapeutic outcome is to be achieved; however, protecting the safety of the patient, other patients, and the caregivers is of no less importance, yet this responsibility also carries with it legal and ethical implications. Balancing these two responsibilities can be realized even in a situation where supportive therapeutic interventions have been ineffective in de-escalation of an aggressive patient. When used with a compassionate, humanistic approach, restraint can achieve a therapeutic outcome for the patient while protecting the safety of others.

European Psychiatry on the Eve of War: Aubrey Lewis, the Maudsley Hospital and the Rockefeller Foundation in the 1930s by Katherine Angel, Edgar Jones, Michael Neve

Health & History 11/1 2009 187 Katherine Angel, Edgar Jones, and Michael Neve, eds, European Psychiatry on theEve ofWar: Aubrey Lewis, the Maudsley Hospital and the Rockefeller Foundation in the 1930s {Medical History, Supplement No. 22) (London: The Wellcome Trust Centre for the History ofMedicine at UCL, 2003). ISBN 0-85484-092-3 (HB). 189 pp. Why did theRockefeller Foundation (RF) suggest thatLondon-based Australian-born and raised psychiatrist, Aubrey Lewis (1900-1975) travel tomajor centres of psychiatry and allied scholarly fields in continental Europe asWorld War II loomed, and heavily influence the tripby providing him with lettersof introduction? InMarch 1937 when Lewis set out on his RF-inspired sixmonth long journey, he had worked at theMaudsley Hospital inDenmark Hill, London, for nine years under eminent psychiatrist Edward Mapother, the latest year as clinical director. Like Mapother, he shared the RF's views regarding the backwardness of psychiatry with respect to other areas of medicine, and the boundaries of a respectable, scientific psychiatry. Both Mapother and Lewis believed that advances in psychiatry and the development of a unifying framework of knowledge and clinical practice depended on thorough empirical research carried out in institutions linked to universities, with clinics providing the bridge between laboratory science and clinical practice. In this theywere at one with theRF which since 1913 had been promoting the concept of a healing-teaching-research triad capable of fundamentally changing medical practice, but that depended on revamping relations between universities, research bodies, and hospitals. But was there also a financial motivation for the trip? In the 1930s the RF was sponsoring the institutional reorganisation of psychiatry and the Maudsley was a beneficiary. Starting in 1935, the RF awarded the Maudsley grants of several thousand pounds a year to fund research and, by 1938, itmade known its preparedness to make a large capital endowment towards an Institute of Psychiatry at the hospital to the tune of 'a hundred thousand pounds' (p. 18). In the circumstances, Lewis doubtless understood the financial power and policy decision-making influence of theRF around the time of his European trip. Lewis' report to theRF, a version ofwhich is reprinted in thebook togetherwith several essays thatput itintocontext, provides invaluable insights into the thinking of the man who became 'themost influential 188 BOOKREVIEWS post-war psychiatrist in theUK,' wielding wa profound influence on clinical practice, training and academic research' (p. 3). His report conveys a keen eye for detail and a candid assessment of character as he reviews the human and other resources available at psychiatric centres and related bodies inHolland, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Italy,Hungary, Austria, Poland, Russia, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. (Due tohis Jewish heritage, Lewis did not visit Germany, whose university kliniks had provided a model for theRF's reforms inmedicine, and due to the Spanish civil war, he did not visit Spain.) It also demonstrates his fundamental orientation tomental illness as a consequence of interaction between heredity, physical disease, and emotional development; his reservations about biological treatments such as leucotomy, electro-convulsive therapy, and insulin coma therapy; his skepticism about thevalidity of psychoanalysis; and his interest in studying social psychiatry and occupational therapy.While the director of theRF's Division ofMedical Education from 1930, Alan Gregg, was interested inpsychoanalysis, he and others from the RF applauded the report, finding it informative and useful. European Psychiatry on theEve ofWar draws on a wide range of primary sources, including correspondence held by theBethlem Royal Hospital Archives and theRockefeller Archive Center, todemonstrate thecrucial involvement of theRF in thedevelopment of the Maudsley Hospital and therefore of English psychiatry. Importantly too, it expands on historical accounts of theMaudsley Hospital, Edward Mapother, and Aubrey Lewis in the 1930s, providing fresh insights on psychiatry in the shadow ofwar. ANN WESTMORE, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE Stephanie J. Snow, Blessed Days ofAnaesthesia: How Anaesthetics Changed theWorld. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008). ISBN 978-0-19-280586-7. 220 pp. In her latestwork, Blessed Days ofAnaesthesia, historian Stephanie Snow builds on her previous academic publications to bring the history of anaesthesia to a general audience. Snow's immensely readable book traces the early life of inhalation anaesthesia through its emergence from scientific experiments in the late-eighteenth ...

The Serotonin Transporter in Psychiatric Disorders

<p>The neurotransmitter serotonin has been widely studied in psychiatric disorders. Indeed, the serotonergic hypothesis for mood disorders is the most widely accepted hypothesis. Most psychotropic medications, including SSRI antidepressants and atypical antipsychotics, act on the serotonergic system. The serotonergic system consists of serotonin, serotonin receptors, and the serotonin transporter. Within the serotonergic system, the serotonin transporter protein has been a focus of intense research. Researchers have tried to investigate the role of the serotonin transporter protein in a range of psychiatric disorders, from affective disorders to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to schizophrenia. The serotonin transporter protein has also been the focus of researchers trying to explore its role in variations in drug response. In this article, we review the existing evidence involving the serotonin transporter protein in the genesis of psychiatric disorders, variations in symptom presentation, and variations in drug response. We also briefly discuss some of the peculiarities of genetic research in psychiatric disorders and how they affect the outcome of research studies. </p> <h4>ABOUT THE AUTHORS</h4><p>Mohd A. Shamsi, MD, MSc, is Final-year Resident, Department of Psychiatry University of Missouri-Columbia. Sultana Jahan, MD, is Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Missouri-Columbia.</p> <p>Address correspondence to: Mohd A. Shamsi, MD; e-mail <a href="mailto:shamsim@health.missouri.edu">shamsim@health.missouri.edu</a>.</p> <p>Dr. Shamsi and Dr. Jahan have disclosed no relevant financial relationships.</p> <h4>EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES</h4> <ol><li>Describe the location of the serotonin transporter within the serotonin system and its role in the mechanism of antidepressant action.</li> <li>Demonstrate the basic terminology of genetics relevant to advances in psychiatry. </li><li>List the effects of a good study design and the importance of large sample sizes. </li></ol>

Uses of Coercion in Addiction Treatment: Clinical Aspects

Coerced or involuntary treatment comprises an integral, often positive component of treatment for addictive disorders. By the same token, coercion in health care raises numerous ethical, clinical, legal, political, cultural, and philosophical issues. In order to apply coerced care effectively, health care professionals should appreciate the indications, methods, advantages, and liabilities associated with this important clinical modality. An expert panel, consisting of the Addiction Committee of the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, listed the issues to be considered by clinicians in considering coerced treatment. In undertaking this task, they searched the literature using Pubmed from 1985 to 2005 using the following search terms: addiction, alcohol, coercion, compulsory, involuntary, substance, and treatment. In addition, they utilized relevant literature from published reports. In the treatment of addictions, coercive techniques can be effective and may be warranted in some circumstances. Various dimensions of coercive treatment are reviewed, including interventions to initiate treatment; contingency contracting and urine testing in the context of psychotherapy; and pharmacological methods of coercion such as disulfiram, naltrexone, and the use of a cocaine vaccine. The philosophical, historical, and societal aspects of coerced treatment are considered.

Environmental Connections: A Deeper Look into Mental Illness

Mental illnesses produce some of the most challenging health problems faced by society, accounting for vast numbers of hospitalizations, disabilities resulting in billions in lost productivity, and sharply elevated risks for suicide. Scientists have long known that these potentially devastating conditions arise from combinations of genes and environmental factors. Genetic research has produced intriguing biological insights into mental illness, showing that particular gene variations predispose some individuals to conditions such as depression and schizophrenia. Now, thanks to a growing union of epidemiology and molecular biology, the role of the environment in the etiology of mental illness has become more clear. Indeed, E. Fuller Torrey, president of the Treatment Advocacy Center, a nonprofit organization that promotes treatment advances in psychiatry, suggests that mental illnesses increasingly fall into the realm of environmental health. And from that platform, he says, new treatment advances could soon emerge. “Some of the greatest advancements in twentieth-century medicine were achieved by identifying and preventing infectious diseases through vaccination, improved sanitary measures, improved nutrition, and diminished hazards of environmental contaminants,” adds Alan Brown, an associate professor of clinical psychiatry and epidemiology at Columbia University Medical Center. “If environmental risk factors for [mental illness] can be validated and confirmed, there is every reason to expect they will point to preventive measures that lower their risks and morbidity.”

Full Disclosure: Toward a Participatory and Risk-Limiting Approach to Neuroleptic Drugs

Following the many clinical studies of neuroleptic treatment and the resulting practice guidelines and algorithms that have been established by various psychiatric associations, there seems to be little room for considering other treatment concepts that may be at variance with these guidelines: the earlier and the more sustainedly that neuroleptics are taken, the better—this is currently the widely accepted basic principle. If this were indeed correct, service users would have only negligible input into their treatment with neuroleptics. For therapists, there would be little more to do than to inform patients fully about these medications and their untoward effects. The elbow room could be substantially increased if clinical experiences and scientific results that are frequently ignored were to be considered. Such information will be presented in this article, with the aim of enhancing the agency and creativity of users and mental health professionals and of advocating for patient-centered and context-oriented advances in psychiatry. Critical assessments of neuroleptic treatment will be followed by a presentation of the therapeutic potential of complex psychosocial interventions, which enable the avoidance of neuroleptic medications in 40%–70% of instances; and finally, the principles of an approach that we would call participatory neuroleptic treatment will be outlined.

Refining the Questions in Women's Mental Health

Article AbstractBecause this piece does not have an abstract, we have provided for your benefit the first 3 sentences of the full text.As we begin a new year, 2 articles in our "Focus on Women's Mental Health" section bring us new data in the areas of postpartum obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) (Uguz et al.) and self-injurious behavior in women (Favaro et al.). These areas are obviously important to women's health but, at first glance, are not closely related to each other. Both remind us, however, that even in 2007—with all the advances in psychiatry over the past decades—we are still refining the questions that we ask rather than celebrating our ability to cure.

Advanced in Treatment of Bipolar Disorder

Article AbstractBecause this piece does not have an abstract, we have provided for your benefit the first 3 sentences of the full text.This volume belongs to the last group of American Psychiatric Association (APA) reviews that address annual advances in psychiatry. In this era of rapid advances and ever more rapid modes of communications, integration of historical perspectives, different presentations of mental conditions in different populations and individuals, and different properties and effects of many newer medications in various forms to choose from remains of value. The primary focus of this volume is on treatments supported by controlled studies in patients diagnosed with acute mania, acute bipolar depression, or rapid cycling—patients who need long-term maintenance, adjunctive medications, and psychotherapy.'

Abraham Arden Brill, 1874–1948

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Images in PsychiatryFull AccessAbraham Arden Brill, 1874–1948Arnold D. Richards, M.D., and Paul W. Mosher, M.D.Arnold D. RichardsSearch for more papers by this author, M.D., and Paul W. MosherSearch for more papers by this author, M.D.Published Online:1 Mar 2006https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.163.3.386AboutSectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail A.A. Brill was one of the most influential American psychiatrists of the past century. His efforts and personal views were major factors in the development of psychiatry, psychotherapy, and psychoanalysis in the United States during the century’s first half. Brill left the Eastern European village of his childhood at the age of 14 and came, alone and without resources, to the United States and New York City to seek his fortune. By the time he was 29, he had graduated from the Columbia University College of Physician and Surgeons and then trained in psychiatry and neurology. In 1907, he traveled to Europe to pursue the latest advances in psychiatry and became acquainted with the work of Sigmund Freud. Upon his return to New York City, he began what was the first private practice of psychoanalysis in the United States (1).Brill became Freud’s first English translator, and Brill’s translations played a major role in the popularization of psychoanalysis in the United States. In 1911, Brill organized a group of 20 physician colleagues to found the first American psychoanalytic organization, the New York Psychoanalytic Society. Brill thought of himself as the father of American psychoanalysis, writing in 1938:Psychoanalysis was unknown in this country until I introduced it in 1908.…[psychoanalytic terminology], some of which I was the first to coin into English expression, can now be found in all standard English dictionaries. Words like abreaction, transference, repression, displacement, unconscious, which I introduced as Freudian concepts, have been adopted and are used to give new meanings, new values to our knowledge of normal and abnormal behavior. (2)Throughout his career, Brill was unalterably opposed to the practice of psychoanalysis and psychotherapy by nonphysicians and worked diligently to promote psychoanalysis as a subspecialty of psychiatry. In 1931, he helped to found the New York Psychoanalytic Institute, devoted to training physicians in psychoanalysis. As a result of almost a decade of Brill’s efforts, the American Psychiatric Association established a Section on Psychoanalysis in 1934 with Brill as its first head. Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Mosher, 6 Woodlawn Ave., Albany, NY 12208; [email protected] (e-mail). Figure 1.

Fascinating Sessions in Exciting City Promise Not-to-Be-Missed Meeting

Fascinating Sessions in Exciting City Promise Not-to-Be-Missed Meeting

Dr. Alexopoulos Replies

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Letter to the EditorFull AccessDr. Alexopoulos RepliesGEORGE S. ALEXOPOULOS, M.D., GEORGE S. ALEXOPOULOSSearch for more papers by this author, M.D., White Plains, N.Y.Published Online:1 Aug 2005https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.162.8.1552AboutSectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail To the Editor: Dr. Mender’s letter offers additional support for my view that experimentally sound scientific findings have only relative value and underscores the importance of nonscientific processes. He points out that thinkers from two disparate traditions raise questions about the safety of experimentally supported conclusions.Dr. Mender’s first point is that the experimental method cannot adequately confirm or reject scientific hypotheses. This view has been articulated in the “Duhem-Quine thesis” and is based on the assumption that hypotheses cannot be tested in isolation from the theoretical network in which they belong (1, 2). Scientists do not subject an isolated hypothesis to testing but only a whole group of hypotheses. Thus, testing a hypothesis depends on its background assumptions. When the background assumptions are challenged, the observations that initially were used to justify a hypothesis become irrelevant. However, when a predicted event fails to occur, it is evident that something in the hypothesis needs to be changed, but nothing in the experiment indicates what the change should be. Consequently, any hypothesis can be safeguarded from falsity, so long as scientists are prepared to make appropriate adjustments to other parts of the theoretical framework. Therefore, critical experiments alone may be inadequate to change the zeitgeist of science.Dr. Mender’s second point emphasizes the power of culture in the scientific process. It is based on the existentialist view that embeddedness in a cultural context contributes to an inveterate tendency toward conventionalism and inauthenticity (3). Scientists are not immune to this problem. As they become initiated in the practices of the scientific community, they are inclined to drift along with the crowd, enacting stereotyped roles. The current competitive funding and publication system encourages conformity and compromises the scientists’ ability to seize on and define their own scientific lives. Thus, to be authentic is not an expected consequence of the scientific process and requires action.Paraphrasing Socrates’s “εν οιδα οτι ουδεν οιδα,” one can argue that there is no safety in science or anything else. Nonetheless, despite its limitations, science has offered the soundest approach to understanding and treating psychopathology. Most of the recent treatment advances in psychiatry have been based on science. Thus, my argument is not one of scientific nihilism but one that emphasizes the need for awareness of the nonscientific forces influencing the scientific process, including the scientific culture and its extremes, the evolving means of experimentation, and the social factors that promote scientific productivity. Because scientific criteria alone cannot define scientific priorities, this responsibility falls on investigators and policy makers.

Enlightening Sessions, Exciting City Make APA's Annual Meeting a Must

Enlightening Sessions, Exciting City Make APA's Annual Meeting a Must

Challenges to evidence-based medicine:

The practice of evidence-based medicine depends on the availability of clinically relevant research, yet questions have been raised about the generalizability of findings from randomized controlled trials (RCTs). The aim of this study was to quantify differences between RCT patients and treatments and those in day-to-day clinical practice. Data from published reports of two key RCTs underlying recent treatment advances in psychiatry were compared with data on routine psychiatric practice collected through a Practice Research Network (PRN). Hospital inpatient units (RCT) and the full range of psychiatric practice settings in the United States (PRN). Adults with bipolar I disorder and adults with schizophrenia. Demographic (age, gender, race), clinical (principal diagnoses, comorbid conditions, psychosocial functioning, and histories of hospitalization), and treatment (medication name and dosage) characteristics. PRN patients had more comorbid conditions and were more likely to be white, female, and older than RCT patients. In all, 38% of PRN patients with schizophrenia and 55% of PRN patients with bipolar I disorder would have been ineligible for the corresponding RCT. Most PRN patients receiving an RCT study medication were also receiving other medications not allowed by the RCT protocol. Findings support the assertion that RCT patients and treatments are not typical of those in clinical practice, and most patients in clinical practice are receiving treatments that do not have direct empirical support. Research is needed to determine the extent to which RCT findings should be used to guide routine clinical decisions.

Advances in Psychiatry

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Book Forum: Psychiatry in SocietyFull AccessAdvances in PsychiatryPEDRO RUIZ, M.D., PEDRO RUIZSearch for more papers by this author, M.D., Houston, Tex.Published Online:1 Jan 2004https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.161.1.180AboutSectionsView EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail This book consists of a report of activities of the sections of the World Psychiatric Association. These reports were put together on the occasion of the XII World Congress of Psychiatry held in Yokohama, Japan, in August 2002. The purpose was to provide the field at large with a summary of the most relevant and up-to-date advances in the different sectors of psychiatry during the last triennium.Without question, this aim is quite ambitious, and in many ways the book needs to be recognized as a very laudable scientific effort on the part of the editor, Dr. Christodoulou. Unfortunately, not all of the reports in the 32 sections achieve the scientific rigor expected from a project of this magnitude and relevance. Some of the reports, however, are excellent and meet expectations quite well. This is the first time that such a project was entertained by the World Psychiatric Association. One hopes that future efforts of this type will lead to a continuous improvement of the quality of the section reports. Of potential benefit would be to structure the reports in such a way that the individual authors must, for example, use citations of investigational studies and/or reviews published during the last 3-year period, define and summarize the five most important advances that occurred during the last 3-year period, and focus only on what can be demonstrated by the evidence.What I found most useful in this book is the opportunity that it offers the busy practitioner or clinician for a quick review of some of the most relevant issues in a large spectrum of areas in the field of psychiatry. I should add, however, that this book is of limited value to the sophisticated researcher or scholar. An additional benefit of this book is the recognition of an extensive group of collaborators representing all geographical areas and schools of thought throughout the world. This, in itself, is a major success. Moreover, it represents a wealth of intellectual resources that, if appropriately channeled, could lead to unlimited and outstanding scientific contributions in the areas of research, education, and clinical practice.I hope that this book will evolve into a series that is produced every 3 years. I also hope that its editor will excel in the formulation and structuring of this book. I found this book very useful for psychiatric residents and plan to use it accordingly.Edited by George N. Christodoulou, M.D. Athens, Beta Medical Publishers, 2002, 232 pp., 180 Euros (paper). FiguresReferencesCited byDetailsCited ByNone Volume 161Issue 1 January 2004Pages 180-180 Metrics History Published online 1 January 2004 Published in print 1 January 2004

Candidate for Trustee-at-Large

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article INFORMATION ON THE CANDIDATESFull AccessCandidate for Trustee-at-LargeRenée L. Binder, M.D., Renée L. BinderSearch for more papers by this author, M.D., Distinguished Fellow (Member Since 1975)Published Online:5 Dec 2003https://doi.org/10.1176/pn.38.23.0034About the CandidateRenée L. Binder, M.D.Distinguished Fellow (Member Since 1975)•. Professor, Department of Psychiatry, and Director of Psychiatry and Law Program, University of California, San Francisco, 1999-•. APA Assembly: Area 6 Representative, 2002- ; Deputy Representative, 2000-02•. Chair, APA Commission/Committee on Judicial Action, 2000-•. Chair, APA Council on Psychiatry and Law, 1997-2000•. ABPN: Senior Examiner, 1999- ; Forensic Psychiatry Subspecialty Steering Committee, 2001-•. President, American Academy of Psychiatry and Law, 1997-98Candidates’ ViewsIt would be a great honor for me to be able to serve the members of APA as trustee-at-large. APA is the premiere organization for psychiatrists. I have been a member since 1975 and have appreciated how much APA has given to me in terms of professional identity and professional development and as a forum for advocacy for my patients. I have been president of my district branch, president of my state association, Area 6 representative and deputy representative in the Assembly, and chair of three components: Committee on Confidentiality, Council on Psychiatry and Law, and Committee on Judicial Action.I have learned that organized psychiatry can be incredibly effective. When I was president of my district branch, I heard many concerns about the difficulties that our members had in terms of working with the regional Medicare office. I helped organize a meeting with key Medicare personnel, and this led to increased communication and facilitation of billing and the utilization review process. The district branch, representing more than 1,300 psychiatrists, was able to do more than any individual psychiatrist could do.From June to mid-December, I have been on a professional development leave and am working in the U.S. Senate as a health policy fellow. I have learned to appreciate how members of Congress and their staff want to hear from their constituents and professional organizations about the impact of proposed legislation. APA is very well respected and has done an excellent job of advocating for improvements in mental health services. As a member of the Board of Trustees, I will work to continue to support the efforts of APA in advocacy and in public affairs, especially in educating the public about the advances in psychiatry and treatments for mental disorders. I also will work to communicate the successes of our organization to our members. This will help with retention of our members who are unsure about what APA is doing for them.One of the important tasks of APA is to encourage the involvement of our young psychiatrists in organized psychiatry. During my tenure as president of the California Psychiatric Association, I helped organize a conference that was specifically geared to residents and early career psychiatrists. The focus was on improving skills in advocacy and working with the media. We had legislators, lobbyists, and media representatives give presentations. We also were able to offer scholarships to support the attendance of residents and early career psychiatrists. The conference was extremely successful, and our young psychiatrists learned how they could work with organized psychiatry to impact legislation and the public’s perception of psychiatry. This is the type of project that we need to support in other state associations and district branches and nationally.I believe that the job of the trustee-at-large is to represent all of our members to the Board of Trustees and ensure that all concerns are heard and addressed by the Board of Trustees. The job includes advocating for the Assembly, the components, women, minorities, underrepresented groups, international medical graduates, allied organizations, and our younger members. If elected, I will devote my efforts toward ensuring that all of these voices will be heard by the Board of Trustees.Primary Loci of Work and Sources of IncomeWork: 100%—Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute, University of California, San FranciscoIncome: 100%—University of California academic salary (includes faculty practice with outpatients, inpatients, and forensic consultations) ISSUES NewArchived

Community attitudes toward and knowledge of mental illness in South Africa.

Although recent advances in psychiatry have increased our understanding of psychiatric disorders,many people with chronic or severe psychiatric disorders may be unaware that effective treatment is available. It is possible that ignorance and stigma prevent such persons from seeking appropriate help, and that community attitudes and beliefs play a role in determining the help-seeking behaviour and successful treatment of the mentally ill. Nevertheless, there is little research on the attitudes of lay persons toward mental illness within the South African community. The aim of this study was to investigate the knowledge and attitudes of the general South African public toward mental illness, specifically regarding the causes of illness and treatment options. The study design employed a questionnaire survey. Structured interviews (n = 667) were conducted with members of the general public. One of eight vignettes, portraying depression, schizophrenia, panic disorder or substance abuse, with subtle or obvious symptoms, was presented to each respondent. The main findings were that cases were most often conceptualised as stress-related or due to a lack of willpower rather than as medical disorders. Treatment advocated was more often to talk the problem over than to consult professional medical help. Psychotherapy was the preferred treatment option, particularly in vignettes where symptom presentation was subtle, and in cases of substance abuse. These data suggest that stigma and misinformation regarding mental illness exist, influencing preferred treatment modality and help-seeking behaviour. More work needs to be done to educate the public about the psychobiological underpinnings of psychiatric disorders and about the value of effective treatments. A better understanding of these disorders amongst the public would presumably lessen stigmatisation and encourage the use of currently available and effective interventions.

APA Unveils Vision of New, High-Quality MH System

APA Unveils Vision of New, High-Quality MH System

Book Review: Homosexuality and the Mental Health Professions: The Impact of Bias.By the Committee on Human Sexuality, Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, Report No. 144. The Analytic Press, Hillsdale, New Jersey, 2000, 152 pp., $29.95

Book Review: Homosexuality and the Mental Health Professions: The Impact of Bias.By the Committee on Human Sexuality, Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, Report No. 144. The Analytic Press, Hillsdale, New Jersey, 2000, 152 pp., $29.95

Teachers Get Educated About Biopsychosocial Therapies

Teachers Get Educated About Biopsychosocial Therapies

Annual Meeting Returns To APA’s Birthplace

Annual Meeting Returns To APA’s Birthplace