LONDON, August 9 /PRNewswire/ --
According to 'Crying Shame', a new report published today (9 August) by
the Priory Group, mental illness and perceptions of sufferers are still
shrouded in stigma, fear and ignorance.
New research commissioned by the Priory Group(i) reveals that a shocking
72% of adults in the United Kingdom think that there is a stigma associated
with having a mental illness and describe people with a mental illness as
unpredictable (79%), dangerous (50%) and scary (49%).Less than half (45%) of
the adult population think that people with long-term mental illnesses are
able to lead independent, fulfilled lives.
Over half the sample (52%) agree that being diagnosed with a serious
mental illness and being diagnosed with cancer were as bad as each other and
57% believe that all aspects of their lives would be negatively affected if
they were diagnosed with a mental illness.
Most damningly, 77% of adults state that the media does not do a good job
in educating people about mental illness and 76% say that the media does not
do a good job in de-stigmatising mental illness.
Consultant psychiatrist Dr. Natasha Bijlani at the Priory Hospital
Roehampton says, 'Mental illness does not respect age, sex, marital status,
class or region, which means that anyone, at any point in their lives, can
become mentally ill. Susceptibility to mental illness is part of the human
condition - no one is immune. We must stop being judgmental about people with
mental illness. Mental illnesses are real illnesses, just like cancer,
diabetes or arthritis.'
The perceived devastation that mental illness causes led 76% of adults
surveyed to say that they would feel upset if they were diagnosed with a
serious mental illness, 75% would feel worried and 69% would feel fearful
about the future.
Interestingly, 59% of the sample believe that alcohol or drug addiction
is a serious mental illness like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or
depression.
Positive perceptions
Unusually, the Priory Group's research showed that 65% of the sample
describe people with a mental illness as intelligent and 63% as kind, while
76% said that they did not think mental illness was the result of some type
of personal weakness.
'Psychiatric patients are scared, and scarred, by their diagnoses,' says
Dr. Bijlani. 'They are usually terrified at their initial consultation and
feel that they are blamed for their illness in a way that other patients, say
those who require orthopaedic surgery, are not. We hope that this new report
will raise widespread awareness of the shocking stigma that still surrounds
mental illness and encourage people to be more accepting of sufferers. Stigma
is borne out of fear and ignorance. Stigma is created, not inherent, and it
can and must be eradicated.'
(i) Notes to Editors:
- GfK NOP Omnibus carried out a survey of 998 adults aged 16
years and over using a quota sample. The sample was designed to be
representative of all adults in the United Kingdom The sample was
weighted to bring it into line with national population profiles.
Fieldwork was conducted from 22 - 24 June 2007.
The Priory
