The Week of Psychiatry is dedicated to all people (with or without mental illness) who have worked to improve position and the lives of people with psychiatric problems. The mental health (mental health) has become more humane, although there is still much work to be done in the field of imaging, breaking isolation, improve living conditions, enhance relationship between psychiatry and society, improving financial position, improve information services and options. The Week of Psychiatry is not 'finished' and the coming decades we continue to do so. We carry the Week of Psychiatry also to Paul Fine, that a large part of his life has been in the Federal Client and especially for this week. Actively He was the pioneer of the national working group.

The history of the Week of Psychiatry

The Week of Psychiatry has its origins in the anti-authoritarian thinking of the sixties. On the wave of criticism of existing social structures also not escaped psychiatry. Opposite the existing care developed a critical movement, which Foudraine and Jan Carel Muller were important exponents. Foudraine published in 1971 the bestseller "Who is wood ', which both the way it was handled and the psychiatric training, is criticized. Psychiatric patients in the Netherlands According Foudraine psychiatric patients would be approached by psychiatrists and nurses. Much more equal Carel Muller was at the same time director of Dennendal on the grounds of the William Arntsz Hoeve Den Dolder. It was also a much more humane approach to caring for eyes in a community where pupils and casual nurses lived with each other.

Crazy Movement

Also, clients in psychiatry and their relatives were heard from him, they began to express their criticism of the rescue and organized themselves in the Mad Movement (the forerunner of the Federal Client) and their house organ, the Mad Newspaper. The word client emerged as an alternative to the word patient, that too much dependence position of asking for help typified in mental health. Even more personal experience stories came up, the best known examples "Let them feel it 'Corrie van Eijk-Oosterholt and' In the land of the blind 'by Evelien Paull. The book by Corrie van Eijk was a bestseller for months and was the first public accusation against needless suffering that people - in this case Corrie's sister - in psychiatric hospitals was done.

In this climate in 1975 was the first day and then the week of Psychiatry organized: a week of theater, discussion afternoons, actions and the Brain Gein Festival around current themes in the client movement. It's all begonen the day of psychiatry in Wolfheze, set up by a number of critical care providers. Therefore If you come on that big field of Wolfheze than a statuette still remember to this milestone. The statue is a female figure with holes in it. A divided personality.

The client movement in mental health care occurs in a period of great social commitment and criticism of the established order prevails. A broad consensus in the 70s is that human solidarity and social democratization the future: more people should stand up for each other and people should have on their work situation, their environment, their training situation, in short more grip on all aspects of human exist. Many people feel connected to the struggle for independence of the various liberation movements in Africa, Asia and South America. Others are committed to things like a better environment and better working conditions. In psychiatry people begin to stir. Critical nurses, therapists, alternative practitioners, as well as patients and family members to take action to the lawlessness of the psychiatric client, the inhuman treatment conditions and other abuses in psychiatry publicly disclose and up for discussion. They all advocate for improved legal status of clients and also develop their own ideas about how mental health should grant and should be. Organized assistance

Several initiatives

The origin of the patients in the mental health movement is not due to a group or to an action, return the contrary. The roots are in various (sometimes small) initiatives from the early 70s. Following are the major developments displayed. In 1970, the foundation Pandora, founded in 1964 to improve the initiative to recruit. Former patients through an ad the social perception of mental problems This would then, as volunteers, can provide information based on their own experiences in psychiatry. With this initiative, a period in which the perception of psychiatric problems is no longer just the work of clinicians, nurses and educators, but now the hand is taken. Psychiatric patients themselves begin B student nurses organize themselves to perform to deploy, distribute pamphlets activities actions especially within their own psychiatric hospital (Wolfheze, St. Anna, William Arntsz Hoeve, Rosenburg). Their main complaints are the lack of democratic decision-making within the hospital and the bad position as a student nurse. But soon they also involve the treatment environment and the quality of treatment in their criticism.

Medical model

Also, students, workers and psychiatrists give their own criticism of psychiatry, the training, the authoritarian relationships within the institutions, in the treatment of patients, the gene deficiencies of the "medical model" in which the physician is the expert and the patient is reduced to (psychiatric) syndrome. They develop alternative ideas about a more socially oriented and democratic assistance and try to give in experiments in the MOB Leiden, Dennendal and Pompekliniek. These ideas form The book `Who is of wood of the psychiatrist in the Netherlands Foudraine get great public interest.

JAC and Release

In response to and protest against the existing aid institutions are a so- called JAC (youth advisory), sometimes called RELEASE in different cities, was founded. This alternative care assumes that individual problems can be the social context in which they arise and that assistance and advocacy are interconnected. Not be separated All this remains as it were outside the door as opposed to the existing institutions which only looks at everyone's individual problems and society.

Patientenraad [Patients Council]

Alhoewel in een aantal algemeen psychiatrische ziekenhuizen "zaalraden" functioneren, wordt in 1970 in het psychiatrisch ziekenhuis Coudewater de eerste officiële patiëntenraad opgericht. Het creëren van mogelijkheden tot inspraak binnen de psychiatrische ziekenhuizen is een eerste belangrijke stap voor de erkenning van de mondigheid van patiënten. In andere psychiatrische ziekenhuizen wordt dit initiatief overgenomen. Er worden patiëntenradendagen georganiseerd om landelijk en onafhankelijk van de instelling elkaar te ondersteunen, informatie uit te wisselen, gezamenlijke standpunten te bepalen en contacten te leggen. Op 11 september 1971 wordt de Cliëntenbond in de geestelijke gezondheidszorg opgericht, in eerste instantie als een organisatie die de tekortkomingen in de ambulante geestelijke gezondheidszorg wil opheffen. Door deelname aan een uitzending over psychiatrie van het T.V.-programma "Een groot uur U" van Koos Postema, krijgt de Cliëntenbond veel brieven van patiënten/bewoners uit psychiatrische ziekenhuizen. Mede onder invloed hiervan gaat men zich richten op belangenbehartiging en op structurele verandering van de geestelijke gezondheidszorg. Leden van de Cliëntenbond worden actief in allerlei afdelingen, in werkgroepen en in allerlei landelijke en regionale actiegroepen.

Although a number of general psychiatric hospitals "hall councils" [consultation groups: raden = recommend - raad = council] function, the first official council was established in 1970 by patients in the psychiatric hospital at Coudewater. Creating opportunities to participate in psychiatric hospitals is an important first step for the recognition of the empowerment of patients. In other psychiatric hospitals, this initiative is adopted. Patients recommended days were organised nationwide, independent of the institution, to support, exchange information, and to determine common positions and establish contacts. Together On September 11, 1971, the Cliëntenbond in mental health (federation of mental health client groups) was founded, initially as an organisation to address deficiencies in community mental health. By participating in a program about psychiatry "Many hours You" TV program Koos Postema, the Client Bond gets many letters from patients / residents in psychiatric hospitals. Partly under the influence does one focus on advocacy and structural change of mental health. Members of the Cliëntenbond are active in various departments, working groups and in various national and regional action groups.

Gekkenkrant [Crazy Newspaper]

In 1973 verschijnt de eerste Gekkenkrant, een tijdschrift voor psychiatrische patiëënten. Behalve veel brieven van patiënten bevat de krant ook informatie over therapieën, over ontwikkelingen in de inrichtingen en over de rechten van de patiënt. De naam Gekkenkrant levert veel kritiek op, met name van patiënten. De redactie geeft in het vierde nummer (juni 1974) de volgende toelichting:

"Deze krant heet Gekkenkrant omdat hij is voor mensen die gek genoemd worden. Wij zijn dus gek en we komen er rond voor uit. We kunnen elkaar alleen helpen als we inzien dat we allemaal op dezelfde manier worden uitgescholden en gediscrimineerd. Dat is juist onze kracht. Samen gediscrimineerd, dus samen er wat aan doen; dat is de enige manier."

In 1973 the first Gekkenkrant, a magazine for psychiatric patients appear. Besides many letters from patients, Gekkenkrant also contains information about therapies, about developments in the devices and on the rights of the patient. The name Gekkenkrant provoked much criticism, especially from patients. The editorial in the fourth number (June 1974) gave following explanation:

"This newspaper is called Crazy Newspaper because it is for people who are called mad. We are so crazy and we come around for out. We can only help each other as we see.. that we are all in the same way abused and discriminated against. That is precisely our strength. Together we are discriminated against, so together we do something about it. That is the only way."

Actions and bundling of activities

Public opinion and politics are thus the main areas where the patients movement manifests itself. The movement develops its own forms of action to enforce. Force her criticism The different groups are conferences and private hearings, written notes, demonstrations, black books published, signatures, private investigations, political parties worked so forth. In addition, this period is characterized by a combination of rural activities. Known examples of the combination of forces is the National Working Krankzinningenwet, the Working Group `Day of Psychiatry and the National Foundation Patients and Residents Councils.

In 1974, the National Working Group lunatic (LWKZ) formed. This group is very critical of the Bill tabled in 1971 Special Admissions to Psychiatric Hospitals (Mental Health Act) and the draft law (to) change to improve. The legal status of people residing in a psychiatric institution When an official hearing on the bill BOPZ still being delayed again LWKZ organizes itself an alternative hearing in 1976 under the slogan 'I like to be stuck. " Prior to the hearing keep patients, former patients and supporters a 'silent' by The Hague, the first public demonstration of the psychiatric patient movement.

The day and the week

The more collaborative and to operate nationwide action groups is most clearly reflected in the establishment of the Working Group 'Day of Psychiatry. What begins in 1974 with the Day of Psychiatry, quickly grows into the Week of Psychiatry. In the Week of Psychiatry is becoming a different theme set, around which rural activities are organized. By various groups By this time and again choosing a theme each week reflects the organizers, the actions that are out there, the ambience in that period in the patients' movement. Over the years there have been many slogans, themes and mottos used, including: 'Boss in-Brain' (1979) in which a valium free Friday is declared, `Fight for your Mad Law '(1984) which Gek'expres a visit some institutions, `Am I responsible in psychiatry? (1986) which organize almost all patiënten-/bewonersraden in psychiatric hospitals in their own hospital an Open Day.

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