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Clinical Research Fellow, Department of Developmental Psychiatry, Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham NG7 2UH

I read with interest, and a burgeoning sense of disquiet, Gordon & Haider’s article (Psychiatric Bulletin, June 2004, 28, 196–198) on the use of ‘drug dogs’ in psychiatry. My interest was captured both by their authoritative survey of the problems associated with substance misuse, and their fulsome history of the lives and times of the aforementioned canines. Indeed, the authors appeared more concerned with the mental state of the dogs, mentioning the proper provision of ‘periods of relaxation’ and warning of the dangers of ‘the dogs themselves becoming addicted to narcotics’, than of the patients involved.

How apposite, in an era of increasingly authoritarian and coercive mental health legislation and provision (Zigmond, 2004), that this solution be proposed. Rather than attempt to understand the patients’ motives for consuming illicit drugs while in hospital (might boredom, unpleasant surroundings and overworked and distant staff play a role?), the authors suggest subsuming notions of patient-centred care, empathy, therapeutic alliances and a humane ethos, into the need to control behaviour. Yes the comorbidity of severe mental illness and substance misuse is a major problem, but can this stand as a solution? Should we not be expending more energy on the causes rather than the symptoms of this problem?

References

ZIGMOND, T. (2004) A New Mental Health Act for England and Wales: grounds for compulsion. Advances in PsychiatricTreatment, 1, 243 -246.

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This Article Full Text (PDF) Submit an eLetter Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Calton, T. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Calton, T.