New resource charts course to recovery for people with schizophrenia

From the December 2007 issue of Canadian Psychiatry Aujourd’hui:

by Mary A. Metcalfe, M.S.

Warren Butcher is like many young people today. The 28-year-old worked at a number of part-time jobs before landing a full-time position that will finally give him weekends off. As the newest support worker in Winnipeg’s Program for Assertive Community Treatment (PACT), Warren has taken a personal step forward in his journey of recovery from schizophrenia.

Mr. Butcher experienced his first psychosis six years ago and was diagnosed five years ago.

“When we were first faced with his diagnosis we were frightened." His mother Amy, a registered nurse, remembers thinking, “What could I do? How could we help him? Who could we reach out to? Even with my medical knowledge, I didn’t know where to turn."

For patients and families facing that journey today, there is a new publication to help them navigate. Schizophrenia: The Journey to Recovery. A Consumer and Family Guide to Assessment and Treatment was a joint effort by the Canadian Psychiatric Association (CPA) and the Schizophrenia Society of Canada to produce a plain-language resource for those whose lives are affected by schizophrenia.

To read the entire article, click here.

Printed copies of Schizophrenia: The Journey to Recovery. A Consumer and Family Guide to Assessment and Treatment are available from the Schizophrenia Society of Nova Scotia by sending an email to ssns@ns.sympatico.ca.