Reducing the Stigma of Mental Illness: A Report from a Global Programme of the World Psychiatric Association. Norman Sartorius & Hugh Schulze. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005, £30.00, 233 pp. ISBN: 0-521-5493-4

Essentially a factual report upon an international programme to reduce stigma, this book develops many interesting ideas beyond those which might be expected from the title. It gives a detailed account of the interesting, varied and often difficult initiatives undertaken in 19 countries across all continents in a bid to combat the stigma experienced by those living with schizophrenia and those around them.

It also, by relating plainly a wide variety of initiatives, gives the reader numerous ideas how they themselves might change their practice to combat stigma; it is worth noting that a recurrent source of stigma reported by those with schizophrenia was their psychiatrist.

The authors, one an eminent psychiatrist and one a senior communications consultant in industry, approach the programme from very different backgrounds, which makes the book more than simply a description of a ‘ medical’ initiative. The book embraces the principles of marketing and public relations and attempts to evaluate their use in medicine. The results are interesting, and the overarching idea that we need to work with those within business communities, journalism and the teaching profession (among others) in a meaningful way, as well as with people with schizophrenia and their loved ones, seems an important one.

The results from national programmes show that relatively small, poorly funded initiatives can make a significant difference to experienced stigma, sometimes more so than larger and less local initiatives. The book subtly brings the reader to the conclusion that it is not a matter of having time in our lives to challenge stigma, but rather one of making time. Importantly it also suggests that times of change and upheaval, in services or society at large, are times of great opportunity for challenging attitudes and providing education. The implicit message that stigma is not necessarily a ‘fact of life’ for those living with schizophrenia is a refreshing one, although perhaps harder to believe if you have been experiencing it personally for some time.