Dear David, This report was not based on formal 'research' as such but supposed to represent current views within DCP (hence BPS) and supposed to include service user views. They had not approached any black service users although as we all know black people are over-represented among people given the diagnoses that the report was considering. I hear too that until quite recently there was in existence an (official) Faculty of Race and Culture in the BPS but this was abolished by the top brass without even consulting its members (who were of course mostly BME psychologists although not exclusively so). It all smells of institutional racism I must say. Best wishes, Suman -----Original Message----- From: Truswell David (CENTRAL AND NORTH WEST LONDON NHS FOUNDATION TRUST) [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: 04 December 2014 08:19 To: Suman Fernando; [log in to unmask] Subject: RE: Division of Clinical Psychology seems to exclude BME experience Dear Suman It's astounding, particularly after the work that went into the Delivering Race Equality Action Plan (however flawed people may see this as having been) that such myopic research gets published - did it not get peer reviewed on the way to publication. This seems to be a systematic blind spot that remains immune to the huge amount of evidence regarding discrimination in diagnoses, support and access to treatment. Particularly worrying is when some attempt to address the problem these days its often by blaming that pesky 'cultural diversity' they bring along (how this works for 3rd and 4th generation migrants perplexes me) and as opposed to examining what drives the entrenched view that black folks (and especially black man) are just more prone to be 'crazy' and there is nothing you do. Doing proper research would be a start. Regards David Truswell Senior Project Manager Trust Headquarters Stephenson House 75 Hampstead Rd. LONDON NW1 2PLan do. Wel reading some Mobile Number:07969 692315 email: [log in to unmask] Web address: www.cnwl.nhs.uk Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust Stephenson House, 75 Hampstead Road, London NW1 2PL Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL) is one of the largest trusts in the UK, caring for people with a wide range of physical and mental health needs. We have approximately 7,000 staff who provide healthcare to a third of London's population and across wider geographical areas, including Milton Keynes, Kent, Surrey and Hampshire. As a Foundation Trust we involve service users, carers, the public, staff and partner organisations in the way that we are run and our future development. If you are interested in becoming a member of our Foundation Trust please visit: www.cnwl. nhs.uk/get-involved ________________________________________ From: Health of minority ethnic communities in the UK [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Suman Fernando [[log in to unmask]] Sent: 03 December 2014 21:13 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Division of Clinical Psychology seems to exclude BME experience Warning: This message contains unverified links which may not be safe. You should only click links if you are sure they are from a trusted source. Dear Raghu, I know that some of the people involved know very well about the 'ethnic issues' around diagnosing 'schizophrenia'. From what the editor (Anne Cooke) says in her initial response to our letter, apologising profusely for making a mistake etc, it does seem they may have actually made a deliberate decision to 'exclude' BME experience! I was really flabbergasted that they should have done that - they should have known that it would make them look racist. I suppose this sort of taking the 'easy' option is what institutional racism is about sometimes - 'unwitting prejudice' as McPherson said. Best wishes, Suman Suman Fernando -----Original Message----- From: Raghu Raghavan [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: 03 December 2014 20:54 To: Suman Fernando; [log in to unmask] Subject: RE: Division of Clinical Psychology seems to exclude BME experience Dear Suman When I went through this report yesterday I had the same feeling - the authors have totally ignored the experiences of Black Asian and Minority Ethnic communities. This clearly shows their ignorance of the inequalities experienced by BAME communities in our mental health services. It is not easy to ignore three decades of documented evidence on the inequalities and institutional racism experienced by Black people . Does it mean the authors were looking at only white ethnic evidence? What can I say.. A missed opportunity to highlight best practice in working with BAME population. Raghu Raghu Raghavan Professor of Mental Health / Director of Mary Seacole Research Centre Faculty of Health and Life Sciences De Montfort University Room 3.26 Edith Murphy House Leicester LE1 9BH United Kingdom Email: [log in to unmask] Tel: +44 (0116)2013831 ________________________________________ From: Health of minority ethnic communities in the UK [[log in to unmask]] on behalf of Suman Fernando [[log in to unmask]] Sent: 03 December 2014 20:16 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Division of Clinical Psychology seems to exclude BME experience Dear Anil, Good point you make about research studies and it has resonance with what seems to have happened in the case of this report too. Actually this Report by Division of Clinical Psychology (DCP) was not reporting on a study as such. The report is supposed to be an overview of why and how the diagnoses of schizophrenia and psychosis are made and what sort of help psychologists may give people given these diagnoses. As far as I can see, the report quotes the experiences of white people only and further does not seem to recognise that matters of 'race' and cultural difference has anything to do with the diagnoses they expound upon and what they mean. Meanwhile, the situation for many years has been that these two diagnoses are over-used for people from some BME communities especially African-Caribbean people - an issue generally called the issue of 'over-representation'. It is something that black people are very concerned about and has led to allegations of institutional racism in mental health services and ideas about how cultural differences play into the way diagnosis are made - and even more importantly the treatments that may result and deprivation of rights as a result of sectioning. The DCP report seems to have totally ignored the experience of BME people and seems to have avoided questions of cultural diversity and 'race', although there is a vast literature on this that the 'eminent clinical psychologist' could have consulted even if they did not wish to ask BME colleagues who may be less 'eminent'. It may be the case that psychologists have nothing to say to BME communities but perhaps the report could have made that explicit. Best wishes, Suman Suman Fernando WEBSITE: http://www.sumanfernando.com Visiting Professor, Faculty of Social Sciences & Humanities London Metropolitan University Formerly Senior Lecturer in Mental Health, European Centre for Migration & Social Care (MASC) University of Kent Consultant Psychiatrist, Chase Farm Hospital, Enfield, Middlesex NEW BOOK: http://www.palgrave.com/products/title.aspx?pid=669016 NEW BOOK: http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9781138016583/ RE-ISSUE OF CLASSIC: http://www.psypress.com/books/details/9781138839588/ From: Health of minority ethnic communities in the UK [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Anil Jain Sent: 03 December 2014 19:42 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Division of Clinical Psychology seems to exclude BME experience Dear Suman, Hanif and list members This seems to be the case in most of the research trials- even those funded by NIHR and MRC! I see that in my specialty of breast cancer. BAME patients are excluded from various clinical trials for variety of reasons- mainly stereotyping, interpreter/ translated material requirement, poor compliance etc etc. Unfortunately they don't realise their studies are biased and not truly representative of the current demographics of the UK! Perhaps we should fight for inclusion of patients from all ethnicity and background in such studies! Any thoughts would be welcome. Kind regards Anil Prof Anil Jain MB BS, MD, FRCR, PG Dip (Medical Law) Consultant Radiologist Dept of Radiology and The Nightingale Centre & Genesis Prevention Centre University Hospital of South Manchester NHS Foundation Trust Southmoor Road Wythenshawe M23 9LT Tel: +44(0)161-291-4475 Fax: +44(0)161-291-6201 Mobile: 07711919881 E-mail: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> Twitter: @Prof_Anil_Jain Disclaimer: This e-mail and any files transmitted with it are confidential. If you are not the intended recipient, any reading, printing, storage, disclosure, copying or any other action taken in respect of this e-mail is prohibited and may be unlawful. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender immediately by using the reply function and then permanently delete what you have received. On Wed, Dec 3, 2014 at 7:14 PM, Suman Fernando <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote: You can see the report with details of those who contributed at the BPS DCP website - https://www.bps.org.uk/system/files/user-files/Division%20of%20Clinical%20Ps ychology/public/understanding_psychosis_-_final_19th_nov_2014.pdf OR try: http://www.bps.org.uk/networks-and-communities/member-microsite/division-cli nical-psychology/understanding-psychosis-and-schizophrenia Suman Suman Fernando WEBSITE: http://www.sumanfernando.com From: Health of minority ethnic communities in the UK [mailto:[log in to unmask]<mailto:MINORITY-ETHNIC-HEALTH@ JISCMAIL.AC.UK>] On Behalf Of Hanif Sent: 03 December 2014 19:10 To: [log in to unmask]<mailto:MINORITY-ETHNIC-HEALTH@JISCMAIL .AC.UK> Subject: Re: Division of Clinical Psychology seems to exclude BME experience It will be interesting to know who these "eminent" professionals are who were part of the report? Perhaps they need training on race- culture- and ethnicity? What a sad state of affair! Hanif. On 3 Dec 2014, at 16:28, Suman Fernando <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote: Six days ago, the BPS division of Clinical Psychology launched a report called 'Understanding Psychosis and Schizophrenia'. apparently drawn up by 'eminent clinical psychologists drawn from eight universities and six NHS trusts, together with service users'. Believe it or not, BME groups and people seem to have been totally excluded and of course issues (of 'race' and cultural diversity) that affect BME groups ignored! A group of us who initiated ISL (Inquiry into Schizophrenia Label) have written to Anne Cooke the editor of the report and our letter is now available on my website - - http://www.sumanfernando.com/Letter%20to%20Anne%20Cooke.pdf Read and see what you think! Best wishes, Suman Suman Fernando WEBSITE: http://www.sumanfernando.com **************************************************************************** **************************************** This message may contain confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient please inform the sender that you have received the message in error before deleting it. Please do not disclose, copy or distribute information in this e-mail or take any action in reliance on its contents: to do so is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. Thank you for your co-operation. NHSmail is the secure email and directory service available for all NHS staff in England and Scotland NHSmail is approved for exchanging patient data and other sensitive information with NHSmail and GSi recipients NHSmail provides an email address for your career in the NHS and can be accessed anywhere **************************************************************************** ****************************************