Singh, Swaran P. and Burns, Tom. (2006) Controversy - Race and mental health: there is more to race than racism. British Medical Journal, Vol.333 (No.7569). pp. 648-651. ISSN 0959-8146

Full text not available from this repository.

Abstract

Some minority ethnic groups in England and Wales have higher rates of admission for mental illness and more adverse pathways to care. Are the resulting accusations of institutional racism within psychiatry justified? It occurred to me that there was no difference between men, in intelligence or race, so profound as the difference between the sick and the well. F Scott Fitzgerald. The Great Gatsby. 1925 The “Count me in” census for England and Wales showed higher rates of admission for mental illness and more adverse pathways to care for some black and minority ethnic groups and produced predictable accusations of institutional racism within psychiatry.1 Lee Jasper, chair of African and Caribbean Mental Health, stated: “This census confirms once and for all that mental health services are institutionally racist and overwhelmingly discriminatory. They are more about criminalising our community than caring for it.”2 In fact, the census clearly states that it “highlights the differences between various black and minority ethnic groups and the need to avoid generalisations about these groups. It does not show a failure in the services” (page 7) and comments that “although many possible explanations have been put forward for these patterns, the evidence is inconclusive” (page 27). Not surprisingly it was the accusation of institutional racism, described as a “festering abscess within the NHS,”2 that made the headlines. Mr Jaspers is not alone in expressing such concerns. Several reports and inquiries have also alleged that psychiatry is institutionally racist.3–6 What then, is the evidence that the census findings can be attributed to racism within psychiatry?

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	R Medicine
Divisions:	Faculty of Medicine > Warwick Medical School > Mental Health and Wellbeing Faculty of Medicine > Warwick Medical School
Journal or Publication Title:	British Medical Journal
Publisher:	BMJ Group
ISSN:	0959-8146
Date:	23 September 2006
Volume:	Vol.333
Number:	No.7569
Number of Pages:	4
Page Range:	pp. 648-651
Identification Number:	10.1136/bmj.38930.501516.BE
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Publication Status:	Published
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access
URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/33042

Data sourced from Thomson Reuters' Web of Knowledge

Request changes to a record

Actions (login required)

View Item