This is a reply to Cathy David’s post on Allegations Against Psychiatrist Graham Burrows …let’s start with her comments…

“I am really disappointed that you are publishing this article without ethically including the other side of the story. Pretty much all the patient quotes in the ‘body’ of the article are from the one website ratemds.com and you haven’t included any of the positive comments. Anyone can do a search of that site and see more than 50% of the comments are supportive of the treatment received from Prof Burrows. I have spoken to many patients who are very happy with his treatment. I’m not denying that a percentage are not suited to his style of practice but my personal opinion is don’t crucify a man who has probably done more for mental health promotion and awareness in Australia over the last few decades than any other mental health professional in the country. Those who are unhappy should take action through the medical board or through the legal system. Trial by media is never an appropriate course of action”.

"I don’t think there’s anyone in the world today who could emphatically say how an anti-depressant works"

From your posts on the web I would have to say that anyone who has been part of the mental health culture for over two decades and can make statements like… “I have seen patients of his [Graham Burrows] on about 15 different brands of anti-depressants and four different brands of antipsychotics”, and, “I’m not a doctor but it does appear to my eyes in recent years that Seroquel and Abilify are the two most effective antipsychotic medications”… would mean that you are most likely a psychiatric nurse and not only interested in keeping your job but also a personal supporter of Graham Burrows.

This blog was written to give desperate people a chance to have their voice heard.  And no, they couldn’t find another doctor and no, it would have been impossible for them to be able to articulate their suffering at the hands of such a lauded doctor to the medical board who are well known to protect even the most reprehensible doctors in the medical profession.

7News is not to my knowledge ‘on a witch hunt’. They had over 700 patients of Graham Burrows contact them with horror stories and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Graham Burrows s disdain and mistreatment for even one person in his care is a flagrant disregard to both his oath as a doctor and his obligation to his patient. In his arrogance he dispensed his own personal brand of un-professionalism to thousands of desperately ill people and it is evident from his patients own comments that they feel he treated them like lab-rats, over medicated them, misdiagnosed them and has continued to fully support the pharmaceutical industry until the 7News report was aired.

Graham Burrows has been called the ‘Cosmetic Psychiatrist‘, a ‘gun for hire‘ and only now the Medical Board is monitoring allegations made by patients.

Perhaps you are unaware Cathy that Seroquel is an anti-psychotic that comes with increased risks of obesity, diabetes, muscle spasms and other serious life threatening side effects and that just this March, AstraZeneca paid $68.5 million to settle claims that it improperly marketed Seroquel for children and for other unapproved uses beyond the treatment of adult schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

I’ll close with this little number from dear Professor Graham Burrows, he said, “I don’t think there’s anyone in the world today who could emphatically say how an anti-depressant works – whichever antidepressant group and having said that we do know a lot of chemistry about what actually occurs. Now I sometimes say does anyone know what electricity is, but we use it”. [no citation needed as it's spread over hundreds of web-pages by now!]

Cathy, I know how much Graham Burrows likes to recommend electroconvulsive therapy…what are his words again…oh yes he said it was, “the most effective treatment for severe depression“. Well…if you see Graham tell him that before he schedules another patient for ECT if he would like me to explain just how electricity works…he can give me a call.

A 7News special investigation has uncovered a major medical scandal, with serious allegations against one of Melbourne’s most senior psychiatrist Graham Burrows. He is the President of the Mental Health Foundation of Australia also President of the Mental Health Foundation (Victorian branch) and former president of the Alzheimer’s Association of Victoria. From 1981-1985 he served as Regional Vice-President Oceania Regional and Life Member of the World Federation of Mental Health.

Graham Burrows has published the Handbook of General Hospital Psychiatry and has contributed chapters to approximately 190 other scientific books. He serves on the editorial boards of 30 international and Australian journals. It sounds like Graham Burrows’s a man on a mission…but who’s mission? As chairman of the Mental Health Foundation it is known that he accepted funding on behalf of the Foundation from AstraZeneca, Servier and Pfizer.

How did it all begin?

The Mental Health Foundation of Australia was born in July 1981when five people (Dr Graham Dene Burrows, Graeme Angus, Anne Thomson, the Reverend Alan Jones and Albert Moore) gathered at the Department of Psychiatry at Melbourne University to form the Foundation.

The MHFA was begun as a charitable organization. Graham Burrows and his four friend wanted to draw attention to what psychiatry called ‘the nation’s rapidly mounting mental health problem’. I’m sure this merry little band could also see that a charitable organization was (is) a lucrative business with lots of perks as long as one kept up the spin of disinformation to both the public and the Government. And much of their reasoning was true. Certainly there were [and are still today] an inadequacy of mental health care due to cost cutting exercises by the Government that had resulted in closing mental health hospitals in favor of [underfunded] community care and pharmaceutical medication.

The MHFA quickly came to be considered a ‘peak body’ and defined one of it’s fundamental aims as: “To encourage and promote mental health at a personal and social level according to such values as justice, equality and humaneness”. But as we can see from the news on channel 7 there is a palpable difference in the attitudes of a great many of Graham Burrows’s patients and certainly with this type of exposure there will be a greater awareness within the community.

My conclusion is this in terms of Graham Burrows is that he is not the only rotten apple in the barrel. He’s not the only megalomaniac with a bad case of, “ look at me – I’m God”. I could name two or three dozen others just like him. The two that come to mind are Patrick McGorry and Ian Hickie.

Psychiatrist Graham Burrows

Here are just some of the [very raw] comments I found online…let their voices be heard.

Prof Burrows decision to start me on medication started a snowball effect that ruined my life for 4 years. I had an eating disorder, was under-weight and suffering psychosis directly from malnutrition. I was put on a ridiculously high dose of Schizophrenia medication along with sleeping tablets and anxiety tablets, before I had even been properly assessed by him that he continued to increase while I was under his care. My mum fought so hard to get me off the medication as what I needed was gentle, caring treatment for the eating disorder, re-feeding and understanding. The medication turned me into a zombie and I could barely function. This then gave them permission to say I was mentally unwell, and I was put on and off many medications for way too long, which knocked both my mind and body around immensly. I finally was taken off medication 1 year ago and my life feels like it has just started, life is now fantastic. And as my mum says, Burrows ego arrives 5 minutes before he does.

And…

“Dr. Burrows is an arrogant, mindless idiot of the highest order. Not only did he WRONGLY DIAGNOSE ME WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA when I was suffering a psychosis, as a result of severe malnutrition… he put me on a ridiculously high dose of schizophrenic medication- FAR exceeding any amount that a person of my height and weight should have been taking… I was an eighteen year old girl and I was taking quadruple the dose of the adult males in the clinic!! The medication turned me into a dribbling zombie, but he kept UPPING THE DOSE because he couldn’t understand why it wasnt workng… HINT… maybe because I DIDNT HAVE SCHIZOPHRENIA!?! This high dose resulted in me having my first grand mal seizure. He should be out of practise. He is an absolute fool, an arrogant, unkind, unempathetic, heartless man”.

And…

“Throughout the 1990s, Dr Burrows was the public face of the Australian False Memory Association. For years, Dr Burrows has promoted the false notion that many women with histories of sexual abuse are, in fact, liars and fantasists. He subsequently wrote a character reference for another psychiatrist, who was also a Board Member of the Australian False Memory Association, who was struck off for having a sexual relationship with a patient who subsequently committed suicide. Dr Burrows defence of people accused of sexual offences raises serious questions about his credibility and professionalism”.

And…

“Nasty, small minded old man. Of all the doctors i have seen Burrows really takes the cake. Thank the gods that he has been given the boot from Austin Hospital. This foolish old man thinks that just because he can stick a few certificates on his wall, that he is a competant Dr. I had to have a medical report written by him for a Work Care claim. He charged almost $786.00 for less than half a page of nonsensicle dribble. I pity any person that happens to be unfortunate enough to be placed under his so called care. Beware of this man. Try every other doctor you can before you even think about making an appointment with this evil little man. His license needs to be revoked and it is entirely possible that he himself requires treatment for a Schizo-effective Narsosistic Personality Disorder. He needs to be questioned as to his intent when dealing with Mental Illness. His lack of Empathy, Sympathy and Understanding is well known amongst his colleagues. He needs treatment himself”.

And…

“Amaazed that he can be so rude and lack empathy to his patients. When questioned about drugs,he cannot cope with it, as b/c he is a professor no one should dare question him as to what he says. Reasuring to see that Iam not the only one he has been so judgemental, calling names etc and so very rude and makes his pts feel toatlly lacking in self esteem and any likley hood in getting better unless taking, handfuls of addictive drugs.Once he has you. he wontlet you go and just maybe he continues to destroy you”.

And…

“I find it scary that this man is still able to practice as a psychiatrist. It needs to be public knowledge that Graham Burrows has ruined many peoples lives. He gives out drugs constantly, you would have to wonder if he is getting paid commission from the pharmacutical companies. Just dont go to Dr Burrows. He is very bad person. And going by this board, has hurt alot of people. And Graham if you are reading this, maybe you need to go take a look at yourself and reaccess your motives and take a long hard look at what you have done to people. Maybe you could apologise to people whose lives you have ruined”.

And…

“This man is perhaps the most arrogant professional i have ever met in the mental health field. i found him to be mysoginistic and to be completely therepeutically unskilled in his preparedness to cross boundaries. no doubt he knows about medication, but i question his understanding of human behaviours. he lacks humility and actually boasts that he is arrogant”!

And…

“I seriously wonder how an obesessive compulsive can be diagnosing patients and deciding their course of treatment when he needs to sort out his own headspace. He’s also rude and very possessive of the seats in his waiting area if other patients sit near his suite he clears them away claiming that they are his seats!. This guy has so many issues that he is not fit to treat anyone. I would also suggest that before he diagnoses someone with a schizoaffective disorder, he should sit back and think how a mother feels about being separated from her year-old child. I would take out anyone who tried to separate me from my kids and from what I could see, the woman’s attitude was reactive to the situation. Burrows has no empathy. He has his own issues to deal with, so don’t expect him to have time for yours”!

And…

“Like many of you i was unfortunate enough to have Graham burrows as my doctor. He was rude, arrogant, denegrated me and my family, prescribed me excessive amounts of addictive drugs and above all treated me like i had no hope of recovery or a normal life when infact since iv stopped seeing him my life is greater than it was before i got sick. He is cruel and hurtful to those people who desperatly come to him for help. He is a money hungry, self righteous man who should NOT be working in mental health. STAY AWAY FROM THIS DOCTOR”.

And…

“I saw Graeme Burrows for 3 years. He prescribed an addictive drug and when I queried taking it for such a long time he told me it didn’t matter as would be on them for the rest of my life.WRONG> I changed Drs. and got off the medication. This man is a professor and AO, HE IS VERY HIGHLY REGARDED BECAUSE HE CONVINCES ALL AND SUNDRY THAT HE IS JUST ONE STEP BEHIND MOTHER TERESA BUT IS JUST ABOUT TO PUT HIS FOOT ON HER VEIL”.

And…

“One of the worst professionals I’ve ever been to… completely lacks empathy or human connection. Without giving away too many details, I can say that my health (both emotional and physical) were greatly saved by cutting him out of my treatment team… he treats patients like lab rats”.

And…

“Dr Graham Burrows is a someone who believes because he is a Professor he is above everyone. If you go and see this doctor it is unlikely you will be helped. He may write you out a prescription for a drug of addiction to shut you up or you may spend your time being spoken down to. I hve spoken to many, many people who have come out worse after been treated by this so called “doctor”. He wrongly diagnoses people, refuses to listen and is just damn right arrogant. All this doctor did for me was give me drugs, wrongly diagose me and took my money. To Graham Burrows we are not his patients. We are his customer”.

I eagerly await the next installment of this saga and can only hope that the voices of mental health patients and the community will be heard and a [transparent] inquiry will be held in the very near future.

Please add your voice to theirs and share your story with others.

Pharmaceutical companies are not in the business of Health, Healing, Cures, Wellness…why?

Because they have found a way to make incredible amounts of money.

The people they are making the money off of become so drugged up that they can’t complain and if they do…well, their doctor or psychiatrist will have them locked away in a padded cell!

Katherine McCormick, CEO Utopia

“The Longitudinal Study of Australians Vulnerable to Homelessness will follow the lives of about 1500 people across Australia, interviewing them every six months over two years, and will analyse the contributing factors that lead to homelessness.”  AND… Senator Arbib said if there were inefficiencies or inadequacies in the system, it was important the government was able to address them quickly so people could get back on their feet as soon as possible. Early intervention was critical.

Well let me say this…it looks to me like the Government has spent far too much on ‘studies’ that keep going around in circles.

Is it, ‘jobs for the boys’ or ‘stretching out the pay cheques for government bureaucrats’? The Australian Government MUST know by now how to fill the ‘holes’ and if this study is over two years…how is that going to help current homeless people with ‘early intervention’, or the 1500 homeless people in the study?

Sorry Ms Gillard but what they need is housing and better diagnostic and mental health services, not a two year study.

Surly it’s time for some hard core action from the Government instead of selling of the land that should be used for mental health facilities. Patients at Royal North Shore Hospital will suffer due to “Labor’s planning incompetence”.

It’s not just the Labor Party…the Libs don’t have a very good record when it comes to mental health.

Have your say…

Clement Chan, Training and Development Assistant

Written by Clement Chan, Training and Development Assistant

Mental health doesn’t just affect the individual but it also affects the people and the communities around them. If we are to look at the costs, we can start at the individual and what they stand to lose. Financial and emotional costs are at the top of the list, as mental health hinders the individual’s ability to function properly at work usually leading to high levels of absenteeism or unemployment.

A lot of the times, people are forced to hide their sickness in the fear of discrimination or embarrassment. This has a direct impact on the emotional well being, as their problems are not being confronted but simply pushed under the rug.

Depression and anxiety is the most common mental health condition in Australia and most often, the individual is unaware of their condition. Without the proper treatment and recovery, many people suffer emotionally, usually leading to alcohol or drug abuse. In worst cases, this could lead to suicide.

The cost of this illness of course reflects onto the individual’s family as well. The pain and heartache of supporting someone through a mental illness is taxing not just mentally but financially as well. As mentioned above, the individual struggles at work hence becoming financially unstable. Their family or loved ones are usually the ones who will be there to pick up the slack, either pay their bills, loan repayments or medical expenses.

In the event of the person losing their life, the emotional cost is devastating and many people find it difficult to recover and move on. The overarching cost to the community for mental health sufferers is the burden it places on taxpayers and employers.

States and territories spent $3,323 million on mental health services in 2007-08 with 4.6 million Medicare claims for health professionals such as psychiatrists. This statistic is rising every year and is costing taxpayers billions of dollars. Employers also bear the cost, as a lot of mental health employees are not being properly treated or in some cases ignored. In these instances, there is a high rate of absenteeism, impacting on a companies salaries and productivity.

As a Gen Y, if these problems are not alleviated then we are going to be the ones who are going to pay for it literally.

There needs to be a shift in how we manage mental health patients, not just prescribe drugs but actually create the framework for recovery and rehabilitation. Hopefully Callan Park will offer that for the thousands who are suffering and ultimately reduce the costs created by mental health.

References: http://www.aihw.gov.au/publications/hse/88/11415.pdf

Mega Nindya, Social Science Assistant

Written by Mega Nindya, Social Science Assistant, Utopia Research Institute

“In 2005, suicide accounted for 299 deaths of young people—a rate of 8 per 100,000 young people… hanging, strangulation and suffocation were the major methods of suicide among young people—accounting for two-thirds of suicide deaths (199 deaths). Self-poisoning accounted for 12% of suicide deaths” (AIHW 2008, pp 29-30). ((Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) (2008) Retrieved 30th November 2010 from http://www.aihw.gov.au/publications/aus/bulletin60/bulletin60.pdf))

Needless for me to emphasise the figures above is far from comforting.

One main overarching factor that I’ve learnt in social work is to look at the issue/client in a holistic framework. That is, not just focus on mental health, social life, family life, economic contribution or lack of or even biological make up but look at these factors as equal players in one’s life.

In other words, the issue of suicide cannot be viewed in a vacuum but rather it is a far more complex issue.

Through the eyes of a Gen Y, there are a vast number of determinants which have the potential to contribute to take one to the thought of leaping from the edge of the cliff as one’s only option.

It is when the level of pain is much higher than one’s coping resources, one of which is social support. Perhaps calling everyone on one’s Facebook friends list at least once a week is not the least practical but keeping a lookout for a handful of friends is much more manageable.

I believe in doing little things rather than one extravagant big action. So, keeping a looking could be in the form of a g’day text message, an email or just a phone call to ask how they are going. I am not saying that one should see every friend as a suicide victim. I am not saying that every suicide victim did not have a friend. But I think keeping in regular contact with one’s friends and keeping a lookout for each other is not only the best prevention but it is also a part of being a good friend. Most of the time the problem is much bigger than we can imagine after all suicide is a complex issue and as a mere friend we cannot fix every single problem that our friends have.

But we do have two ears and one mouth.

That is, we should listen twice as much than we speak and I don’t think it’ll hurt to shut our gabs for a moment and lend a friend an ear. Sometimes what could help is to just listen and acknowledge that they are going through a rough time, hard day at work or to hear how great their day was.

For those who wish to be able to do more at a time a friend expressing suicidal thoughts, it is also useful to educate oneself about suicide.

Shaheena Anvar, Journalism Director

Written by Shaheena Anvar, Director of Journalism, Utopia Research Institute

There is only one word to describe mental health services for Indigenous Australians- appalling.

No- actually there are several words. Any synonym for appalling will do.

It’s funny how there is so much talk about getting Indigenous Australians more involved in society, especially ever since former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s apology to the Stolen Generation in February of 2008.

Yet…what has been done?

According to the Australian Institute of Health and Wellbeing, the gap between the mental illness and well being of Indigenous Australians, compared to those of non-Indigenous heritage is very large.¹

Just to show how serious the situation of mental illness in Indigenous Australians really is, here are a few figures:

2004-05: approximately twice as many hospital separations of Indigenous Australians for ‘mental and behavioural disorders’ in states including Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory, than would be expected, based on the rates of other Australians.²

2003-04: Approximately seven times as many hospital separations as expected for assault among Indigenous males. There was nearly 31 times as many for Indigenous females, when based on all-Australian rates. In addition to these shocking figures, there were also approximately twice as many hospital separations as usual for self-harm, for both Indigenous males AND females.

They are only a few simple figures, yet they paint a whole picture. And not a very nice picture at that. What makes this situation even worse, is that Indigenous Australians have the lowest rate of access to mental health facilities and services, compared to the wider Australian community.³

It has been way too long, that Indigenous Australians have been neglected from society. There is so much talk about inclusion from the government, yet it’s all talk and no action. Mental illness is a serious issue in itself, and it is simply not good enough to toss it aside only to realise years later that ignoring it was all a big mistake.

Geographic isolation ((http://www.mhcc.org.au/manual/ch14.aspx)) as an excuse? No. No way. In a first world country such as Australia, where many citizens gain first hand services whenever and WHEREVER they like, it does not make sense that Indigenous Australians who have occupied this beautiful land for so long, are simply left to fend for themselves. And in many cases, this means suicide.

We as a privileged society, need to stand up for those who cannot and be a voice for those who are silenced.

We need to stand by our fellow Indigenous Australians and let them know that the neglect will soon be over.

1. http://www.aihw.gov.au/indigenous/health/mental.cfm
2. http://www.aihw.gov.au/indigenous/health/mental.cfm
3. http://www.mhcc.org.au/manual/ch14.aspx

Have Baby Boomers become our nation’s landlords?

Is there any ‘affordable’ homes left for the MTV viewing, video game obsessed, fast food consumers? Yes… we’re talking about Generation X – they maybe able to program the VCR with their eyes closed, but do Boomers really think that they have added ‘value’ to society?

Are Gen X’ers any different from boomers 20 or 30 years ago?

By sheer force of numbers, Boomers remodeled society during the 60s and 70s. The perception Boomers had about themselves was tied in with new wealth, more leisure time and guilt free sex, thanks to the Pill. The catalyst for worldwide change was sheer numbers, improved education and a plethora of opportunities in employment. The outcome was a rise in BMW sales, larger homes, smaller birth rates and rampant consumerism.

So, how do Gen-X and Boomers differ at age 25?

Gen-X are not disillusioned by government the same way Boomers were, why, because Gen-X never had faith in government to start with. Gen-X know that they will struggle to find a home they can afford – so they don’t mind living with the oldies well into their 30s, they know that they are funding Medicare and old age pensions and paying outrageous taxes to support government programmes that have not worked in the past and have no future other than political spin.

So, are Gen-Xers capable of becoming our leaders of tomorrow? Will they support Boomers as they age or bring back the debate on euthanasia?

Have Boomers really done all that they can to help the next generation?

Your thoughts?

I’m a Social Entrepreneur. Now you may be asking yourself just what that means – what is a social entrepreneur?

Well, social entrepreneurs are individuals with innovative solutions to society’s most pressing social problems. They are ambitious and persistent, tackling major social issues and offering new ideas for wide-scale change. Social entrepreneurs look for what’s not working and solve the problem, spread the solution and persuading others to take up new challenges that will benefit everyone.

Most social entrepreneurs have a strong desire to be of service to humanity. They want win-win solutions than make changes in the lives of people that may otherwise never have an opportunity to actively participate in society or to reach their full potential.

Why did I become a social entrepreneur? Because I believe that one person can make a difference – especially if they can inspire others to assist in addressing the needs of vulnerable people who might otherwise slip through the cracks.

In order to fulfil my mission as a social entrepreneur I needed to find a nonprofit that had the same vision I did. Well, after looking for quite some time I realised that I would have to put myself on the line. Social entrepreneurs aren’t cowards but the job before me was daunting. As luck would have it I met a few people that believed in the same vision. Long story short…the Utopia Research Institute was created.

Entrepreneurial non-profit organisations like the Utopia Research Institute are born to generate sustainable change for the better. People are attracted to it because they know that the Utopia Research Institute is innovative, community oriented and dedicated enough to fill the gaps by tackling the root cause…call it social accountability.

This ‘social accountability’ includes ‘social return on investment’. That’s the estimate of the total social and economic value and community impact generated by the Utopia Research Institute. And yes, it’s measurable.

Changes in society and in communities are often referred to as the causal processes through which change comes about as a result of a program’s strategies and action. In a non-profit context it relates to how we believe individual, group or social changes happen and how, specifically, our actions will produce positive social results both in humans and as a financial outcome for the whole of society.

It takes hard work, commitment and loads of passion for a social entrepreneur to reach their goal and they never do it all by themselves.  So, if you’re interested in making a difference during your lifetime…drop me a line.

It is vitally essential that further effort be made in caring for the community. Currently, there are services available allowing people to stay at home and be cared for as needed. Whether it be for the elderly, mentally ill or disabled, the community has a high dependence on these services.

Each individual case has a different and unique set of circumstances, which affect them physically, mentally and emotionally. This requires a carer to be well trained in all aspects of providing the appropriate care needed, taking pressure off the clients and families.

The current standard of care offered is fairly poor and needs a new fresh approach to tackle the ever changing needs of the community!

Inadequate training and poor communication is an issue with current care services. Staff are often not experienced enough and have limited English skills. Basic hygiene techniques are also lacking. Specialist care is needed to go into providing continuing training, education and awareness.

Some agencies are run by people from non medical backgrounds. I believe they think of their pockets rather than focusing on what can be done to provide the utmost optimal care. Ultimately creating a better balance of harmony within the community alleviating stress from people and their families who require care and assistance. Which would take pressure off inadequate and overcrowded facilities.

Now is the time to act and place emphasis on the key issues affecting the community!

Community carers are poorly paid and most do not receive fair car and petrol allowances. More has to be done to keep carers in there job. Services that are allocated to staff by their coordinators is unrealistically organized. At times not allowing for any time between clients, going from one to the other, making it very difficult to have a refreshment or to find a toilet. At times we are pressured to drive way out of designated areas with no allowances for petrol.

Agencies need to be more effective in their dealings with clients, staff and family. Providing up to date communication and maintaining information as required. The Area Managers need to be out more in the field ensuring client and staff are happy that the provision of care is satisfactory.

Coordinators have little awareness of what we really do. Most times very limited information iff any, is given to staff prior to commencing a service. Some homes are very unhygienic and cluttered. Safety issues not observed initially. Assessments of homes should be done prior to carers going in.
Focusing on these current issues and others in the community, developing a balance for all is well overdue.

Our part in life is to take part in all life. To bring together all parts of life. So that life is made WHOLE. When we are divided against ourselves we are sick. HEALTH is wholeness. To make whole is to HEAL.