Table 1 Percentage distribution of GP's (N = 100) and public attitudes (N = 791) towards statements about antipsychotic medication
General Practitioners | lay persons | P | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
disagree | rather disagree | undecided | rather agree | agree | disagree | rather disagree | undecided | rather agree | agree | ||
1. Antipsychotic drug treatment is the most effective way to treat mental illness | 7.1 | 4 | 33.3 | 29.3 | 26.3 | 9 | 17.7 | 37.1 | 26.5 | 9.7 | *** |
2. Antipsychotic drug treatment carries a high risk of dependency | 45 | 35 | 12 | 3 | 5 | 3.7 | 14 | 27.8 | 33.6 | 20.9 | *** |
3. The benefits of antipsychotic drug treatment far outweighs the risk associated with it | 1 | 0 | 13 | 36 | 50 | 2.9 | 12 | 40.1 | 32.9 | 12.1 | *** |
4. Treatment with antipsychotic drugs can only calm patients down | 68.7 | 19.2 | 6 | 5.1 | 1 | 15.2 | 20 | 28.2 | 24.8 | 11.7 | *** |
5. In the long run antipsychotic drugs make one even more ill than before | 69 | 23 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 29.7 | 29.3 | 17.2 | 8.8 | *** |
6. Mentally ill people are only tolerable for their relatives due to antipsychotic drug treatment | 3 | 1 | 17.2 | 40.4 | 38.4 | 2.4 | 9 | 29.3 | 42.8 | 16.5 | *** |
7. Since the introduction of antipsychotic drugs, the duration of stay in psychiatric hospitals has become much shorter | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24.2 | 75.8 | 2.6 | 9.9 | 22.7 | 45.6 | 19.2 | *** |