Hippocrates Cried: The Decline of American Psychiatry

by Michael Alan Taylor

Hippocrates Cried offers an eye-witness account of the decline of American psychiatry by an experienced psychiatrist and researcher. Arguing that patients with mental disorders are no longer receiving the care they need, Dr. Taylor suggest that modern psychiatrists in the U.S. rely too heavily on the DSM, a diagnostic tool that fails to properly diagnose many cases of mental disorder and often neglects important conditions or symptoms. American psychiatry has come to reflect simplistic algorithms forged by pharmaceutical companies, rather than true scientific methodology. Few professionals have a working knowledge of psychopathology outside of what is outlined in the DSM, and more mental health patients are being treated by primary care physicians than ever before.

Dr. Taylor creates a passionate yet scholarly account of this issue. For psychiatrists and researchers, this book is a plea for help. Combining personal vignettes and informative data, it creates a powerful illustration of a medical field in turmoil. For the general reader, Hippocrates Cried will provide a fresh perspective on an issue that rarely receives the attention it requires. This book strips American psychiatry of its modern misconceptions and seeks to save a form of medicine no longer rooted in science.

Genres: Psychiatry, Mental Health, Nonfiction

296 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a hard book for me to rate. It is well written and strikes a fine balance of covering broad range while also providing specific examples and studies to keep it from being too abstract. Taylor writes very well with humour and an excellent ability to communicate complex scientific topics. The main reason that I cannot rate this higher is that for the average consumer I think it is imperative to understand there is serious bias in this book. Opinion is welcome, and I think most readers can detect his, but the issue I have is with selection bias in the studies he presents. Unfortunately due to my laziness I did not make rigorous notes while reading it and will not be able to do a thorough play-by-play on the issues but a few come to mind- suggesting that hallucinogens cause brain damage, wellbutrin has 0 efficacy, etc. Hopefully when I have more time I can do a more thorough job of this, but nonetheless readers should take this book with a grain of salt.

THAT BEING SAID, this book does an excellent job of covering some of the absolutely shameful periods in the history (and to also in modern practice and training) and to a certain extent addresses some of the concerns for the future, although it's claim that psychiatry will go entirely extinct is extremely unlikely given the need for inpatient units, chronic care for severe and persistant mental illness and consultation/liaison psychiatry in hospital are not threatened in the same way as "primary care"/general consult psychiatry and therapy. Undoubtably he is right in that neuropsychiatry needs more attention in training.

An absolutely worthwhile and enjoyable read.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book I had never heard of or seen reference to, and never would have found in most academic libraries, but in Morris Library at SIU Carbondale one can browse the shelves, and when I saw the title it made me curious. I’m quite glad I read it. I learned a lot about diseases and disturbances of the brain and what behavioral symptoms they produce, as well as a completely different approach to treatment than either that portrayed in movies or TV or that I had some awareness of. For example, I was under the impression that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) of the American Psychiatric Association is “the gold standard” of current research in the field of psychiatry, while this author gives many examples of how it is actually a political document designed not to offend those who have most power in the association.

Yes, this is a tendentious book. The author clearly states, reiterates, and provides illustrative examples for his premise that, if U.S. psychiatric practice does not become a medical specialty with expertise in neuroscience, it will no longer be supported by insurance providers or the general public.

His expertise and years of experience are clearly communicated but the organization of the book and quality of writing needed a better editor, for less circularity and duplication. Also, for an academic book I found the research cited less rigorous, more haphazard, than I’m accustomed to. His expertise as a clinician and clinical supervisor is very evident, which made all the anecdotes (cases) he described vivid and persuasive.

[GONZA · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a psychotherapist this was a very interesting book, because when I used to work in Italy some of our Professors always told us to take care with diagnoses based on the DSM IV TR, others just used it as Gospel, even if try to find an uni-dimensional diagnose for a client is often a wasting of time. Dr. Taylor provides examples and reason for the things he says and even if he moves in the U.S. I don't think that in the near future things would be so different in Italy; as a matter of fact I fear the coming of the DSM V, with new axes and so on.

Come psicoterapeuta ho trovato quesli libro molto interessante, perchè quando lavoravo in Italia, alcuni dei nostri professori ci dicevano di gestire con cautela il DSM IV (TR), mentre altri lo prendevano per oro colato, anche se è evidente che cercare di far rientrare una persona in una diagnosi monodimensionale non è nient'altro che una perdita di tempo. IL Dr. Taylor fornisce esmpi e ragioni per le cose che dice e anche se lavora negli Stati Uniti non penso che nel futuro prossimo le cose saranno così diverse in Italia; per essere precisi io temo l'arrivo del prossimo DSM V° con i nuovi assi etc.etc.

THANKS TO NETGALLEY AND OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS FOR THE PREVIEW