With the goal of helping people with schizophrenia return to a more "normal" way of life, Zeneca Pharmaceuticals partnered with the American Psychiatric Association to produce a video that would show patients just how possible that kind of life could be.
The video, entitled Critical Connections, is an educational tool that helps physicians demonstrate to patients, through actual case histories, that patients can manage their illness and participate in daily life. The video also is intended to help family members and caregivers understand schizophrenia and its treatment, as well as the role each person can play in facilitating the patient's re-entry into society with an improved quality of life.
According to Nada L. Stotland, MD, Chair, APA Joint Commission on Public Affairs, many people with schizophrenia go through much of their lives without fulfilling some of their most basic, human needs. One patient in the video explains that after seeking treatment and therapy, and sticking with it, she was finally able to go on a date and experience "joy"; a feeling she was so unfamiliar with, she did not even recognize what it was.
Other patients eloquently describe what they have gone through to battle their illness--barriers, obstacles, and milestones. They explain that by accepting their illness, committing to therapy, and complying with medication regimens, they have finally been able to partake in simple, day-to-day activities that many others take for granted, such as having a job, taking care of their children, and even living independently.
Laurie Flynn, Executive Director of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, participated on the advisory board for Critical Connections. "The video clearly reached its goal of inspiring people with schizophrenia and their families to look to the future with hope," she said. "Perhaps even more importantly, Critical Connections helps to lessen the stigma against those who suffer from this serious mental illness. It's important for the public to understand that people with schizophrenia have faces and feelings and have the potential to contribute to society in many different and important ways."
Richard Jed Wyatt, MD, Chief of the Neuropsychiatry Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, was also involved in the development of Critical Connections and is featured in the 30-minute video. "Those patients who are the most informed and whose families are also well educated about schizophrenia tend to respond better to treatment," Wyatt said. "The most recent treatments, therapies, and medications mean that patients truly can lead a better, more normal life."
The APA and Zeneca Pharmaceuticals began to developing Critical Connections in May of 1997. Filmed at the Carter Center in Baltimore, Md., the video was edited from more than 25 hours of film which featured patients and doctors sharing their experiences with schizophrenia.
Critical Connections, made possible by an educational grant from Zeneca Pharmaceuticals, is now available to both doctors and patients, free of charge. For more information on how to order Critical Connections, call the APA at (202) 682-6141 or visit the web site at http://www.deganco.com/schizophrenia/video.
The American Psychiatric Association is a national medical specialty society, founded in 1844, whose 42,000 physician members specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of mental and emotional illnesses and substance use disorders.
Zeneca Pharmaceuticals is a $3.6 billion bioscience business with approximately 7,500 employees in the US and Canada. Zeneca Inc. (in the US) and Zeneca Corp. (in Canada) are both wholly-owned subsidiaries of the UK-based Zeneca Group PLC (NYSE:ZEN), a major $8.6 billion international bioscience business engaged in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of ethical (prescription) pharmaceuticals, agricultural and specialty chemical products, and the supply of healthcare services.
Contact:
Rachel Bloom
Zeneca Pharmaceuticals
(302) 886-7858
[email protected]
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