Does schizophrenia really exist?
October 2006Experts from The University of Manchester hit the headlines on World Mental Health Day (10 October), when they held a London briefing on why 'schizophrenia' should be abolished as a psychiatric category.
Points of view
According to the speakers, ‘schizophrenia’ is a scientifically worthless, stigmatising label, which falsely groups people with a wide range of conditions together. It also fails to inform prognosis and treatment, and actually reduces people's chances of recovery.Paul Hammersley, a central player in the new Campaign to Abolish the Scizophrenia Label, said that a diagnosis of schizophrenia can instantly end a person's career.
According to Professor Bentall 'schizophrenia' doesn't exist as an objectively identifiable disease, and patients would do better if doctors focused on their individual symptoms, rather than trying to place them in a disease category. He continued that the symptoms currently classified as schizophrenia have often been triggered by traumatic life events; yet many patients are given only drug treatments rather than the option to try psychological therapies.
“Those suffering from the conditions grouped under the label actually do better in Africa - where psychiatric services are under-developed - than in the UK,” he said. "In our country the current recovery rate is about 30%; it’s better to have ‘schizophrenia’ in Nairobi where there’s a 50% chance of recovery." The University of Manchester is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
