Briefing Papers

Briefing papers are detailed reports that provide data supported by studies and research. Some of these papers have been adapted from material on the web page of the Treatment Advocacy Center.

1.	Victimization: One of the Consequences of Failure to Treat Multiple studies have shown that individuals with severe psychiatric disorders are especially vulnerable to being victimized. However, individuals with severe psychiatric disorders who were on outpatient commitment, and thus were taking their medication regularly, were victimized only half as often as those who were not on outpatient commitment. <<more>>
2.	What Percentage of Individuals with Severe Mental Illnesses are Untreated and Why? Recent American studies report that approximately half of all individuals with severe mental illnesses have received no treatment for their illnesses in the previous 12 months. The majority (55 percent) of those not receiving treatment have no awareness of their illness (anosognosia) and thus do not seek treatment. Stigma and dissatisfaction with services are relatively unimportant reasons why individuals with severe mental illnesses do not seek treatment. <<more>>
3.	Do Antipsychotic Drugs Change Brain Structure? Antipsychotic drugs, used to treat schizophrenia and manic-depressive disorder (bipolar disorder), change some aspects of brain structure, as do drugs used to treat Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, and other brain diseases. Studying the brain changes may eventually lead to a better understanding of how they work and the prediction of which individuals are most likely to respond to which drugs and which patients are most likely to develop side effects, including tardive dyskinesia. <<more>>