Mental illness "at bottom too long"

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Mental illness "at bottom too long"

Canadian Medical Association Journal 1997; 156; 12

Cuts in the number of psychiatric inpatient beds continue to compromise seriously the effective treatment of patients with acute and chronic mental illness, the past president of the Canadian Psychiatric Association (CPA) charges. Speaking at the CPA's recent annual meeting, Dr. Diane Watson said "care and treatment of persons with mental illness has been at the bottom of Canada's health care agenda for too long." The situation is made worse by a lack of leadership in addressing the stigma that surrounds mental illness, which affects 1 in 5 Canadians. Watson said there should be no further hospital cutbacks until appropriate alternative community services are in place.

| CMAJ January 1, 1997 (vol 156, no 1) |