The history of psychiatric diagnosis | Episode 5

Empowering Minds

MHE Policy Officer Jonas Bull is joined by three experts to talk about the history of psychiatric diagnosis and how to develop a human rights-based perspective on mental health labels.

Dr. Lucy Johnstone, consultant and clinical psychologist, explains how psychiatric diagnosis manuals were established and she explores other ways we can think about experiencing distress.

Lea Labaki, human rights advocate and person with lived experience, shares her personal story of receiving a psychiatric diagnosis and the effect it had on her life. She wrote about the Belgian system of psychiatric institutions, criticising coercion in mental healthcare and institutionalisation.

Dr. Jasna Russo is an independent scholar and a long-term activist in the mental health service user & psychiatric survivor movement. She discusses the importance of a human rights-based approach in mental healthcare.