Drug-free danger

From Andrew Thomas As a practising mental health nurse, I found Clare Wilson’s article on treating schizophrenia (8 February, p 32) interesting on  a theoretical level, but less insightful about the practicalities of patient management. While the Mental Health Act can impose seemingly draconian treatment on individuals, experience tells us that patients who do not take their antipsychotic medication can quickly enter a florid psychotic phase and become a considerable danger to others. The recent case of Nicola Edgington, who attacked two strangers during a psychotic breakdown, sadly attests to this. Wrexham, Clwyd, UK