One of the commonest complaints of mental health services is a perceived failure of communication between caregivers and clinicians regarding those with mental health issues. With this in mind, a few of us put together a form that could
Elder Abuse – A National Legal Response
I work in an old age mental health service. We have a patient, a 77 year old woman, who used to live in her family’s backyard in a tent. She would sleep each night in the cold, regardless of
Grey Expectations
My interview regarding the plight of the elderly in Australia.
Mentorship – The Meaning of Life For the Elderly
I look after the mental health of older adults in the community. Despite common opinion, older adults are usually not more depressed – whilst physical deterioration commonly occurs, one is statistically more likely to enjoy better mental health as one
Glutamate and Dopamine – why it matters in Schizophrenia
Published in MindCafe February 2017 Dopaminergic theories of schizophrenia predominate most psychopharmacological teaching regarding relevant receptor contributions to mental illness. We discuss dopamine-mediated flow through prefrontal and limbic regions, with a certainty borne from decades of successful drug development
Psychotherapy and the Older Person – A Review
In the latest Australasian Psychiatry journal, I provide an update regarding the current state of evidence for psychotherapeutic interventions for the elderly.
Analysing Trump: Pitfalls and Professionalism
No political figure has ever mobilised, and frustrated, the mental health profession as much as President Trump. Prior to Mr Trump’s inauguration, 3 professors of psychiatry called for a ‘neuropsychiatric evaluation’. Shortly after, with the first wave of chaos from
Breaking free of unhelpful fantasies about ageing
“Break Free” is a commercial created by German student Eugen Merher. Intended for Adidas, it shows a gentleman in an aged care facility who becomes obsessed with reliving his glory days as a marathon runner. Restrained from leaving the
The Role of the Father
A famous study on parenting styles had two groups of psychiatrists being shown the same video clip. In the clip, a man is seen seated reading a newspaper, whilst his child is playing on the floor in front of him.
Personality disorders – the ignored mental health epidemic
Pancreatic cancer is well known as the cancer with the lowest profile. A poorly understood and minimally researched disease, its dismal prognosis has an aura of untreatability that is instilled from the first years of medical school. I spoke