Prisoner mental health not improved by drugs

YOU deserve credit for drawing attention to the plight of those prisoners who suffer mental health problems and the failure of the Government to deliver on promises to invest more money and resources in this area (Irish Examiner, Sept 11).

However, the plight of these prisoners is worsened by the fact that the so-called drug treatments for ‘mental illness’ are in themselves disabling and debilitating.

The label ‘mental illness’ is stigmatising and the symbiotic relationship between psychiatry and the pharmaceutical companies is of deep concern given the latter’s tendency to exaggerate and over-rate the effectiveness of their drugs.