Stigmatization of People with Schizophrenia in Clinical Settings

Abstract

The stigmatizing of, and discrimination against, people with mental disorders is as old as humanity. It is also known that stigma and discrimination negatively affect the treatment and recovery of people with mental illness. The main target of the study is to begin to collect robust data about stigma in schizophrenia in order to make it possible to carry out specific programs against it. Our study intended to measure the stigma of people with schizophrenia using the Stigma Experiences Scale -Consumer Version, hospitalized in Psychiatric and Neurologic Hospital Brasov between 1 July 2007 and 1 July 2008, in order to see how this problem is managed in clinical settings. Conclusions of the study reflected the opinion of the respondents: they thought that they were being harassed because of mental illness, they considered that their rights were being denied and that stigma affected their quality of life.