Voices-Julia Quick fall highlights an upcoming series of workshops on technology

2012 
A recent report from a mental health policy group at the London School of Economics, led by Richard Layard, states that ‘mental illness’ accounts for nearly half of all ill health experienced by people under the age of 65 in the UK. Although the group’s report highlights the problem of what it terms ‘mental illness’, the underlying assumption is that a standardised treatment protocol – controlled by the providing authority and delivered according to a specifi c process – will meet everyone’s needs. Psychological distress is not a medical illness and cannot be treated effectively by a traditional medical model. It has its roots in social, structural and environmental processes beyond the control of the individual. The number of individuals with psychological diffi culties has risen steadily since the second world war. The fi nancial cost of treatment is huge, but the real cost is reduced quality of life for many. To treat psychological distress effectively, the root of the problem needs to be exposed. The solution suggested by the report addresses the problem after the epidemic has begun, rather than trying to immunise against it. re-thinking distress
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