February 07, 2009
Weaving a history of psychiatry from states of mind:
BBC Radio 4 have just concluded a fantastic five part radio series called States of Mind on the history of psychiatry in the UK since the 1950s, covering the death of the asylum, to the age of Prozac, to visions of the future.
It's produced and presented by the fantastic Claudia Hammond and weaves together historical research, commentary from researchers and the personal stories of patients and staff who have memories of treatment through the last 60 years.
Although it specifically focuses on the UK, in many ways it reflects the history of mental health in many parts of the world owing to the fact that Britain has tended to be a leader in both psychiatric treatment and radical views of mental health.
The five parts, all of which have the streamed audio available online, are:
Total Institution
Altered States
Community Care?
Happiness in a Pill?
Which Way Now?
I was altered to the series by the increasingly excellent Frontier Psychiatrist blog which is also well worth checking out.
Link to States of Mind page.
