In reply: Foley and colleagues rightly point out that a way to improve the cardiometabolic health of patients with psychosis is to change the way that mental health services are delivered. Although barriers to monitoring exist at the level of the patient, the illness, and the service,1 by focusing too narrowly on the barriers presented by patients, a blaming culture can be perpetuated. If blame is to be attributed, it should be directed towards inflexible services with a medieval belief in separating mental and physical health care.
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- 1 Psychological Medicine, Concord Hospital Medical School, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW.
- 2 Schizophrenia Treatments and Outcomes, Brain and Mind Research Institute, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW.
- 1. Lambert TJ, Newcomer JW. Are the cardiometabolic complications of schizophrenia still neglected? Barriers to care. Med J Aust 2009; 190 (4 Suppl): S39-S42. <eMJA full text> <MJA full text>
- 2. Lambert TJ. The medical care of people with psychosis [editorial]. Med J Aust 2009; 190: 171-172. <MJA full text>