The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #57052

Sara A. Kuppin, Department of Sociomedical Sciences, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 700 168th St., New York, NY 10032, 212-543-0906, sak141@columbia.edu

The goal of this study is to analyze the coverage of the psychiatric medication “Prozac” in The New York Times in an attempt to gain insight into public conceptions about the use of psychiatric medication in the treatment of depression. Expert sources, increasingly encourage a view of mental illness, including depression, as a biologically based illness located in the brain. Coupled with this view of cause, is increasing use of pharmacotherapy in treatment of depression. This trend, and the ensuing debate in the field of mental health on “talk” therapy versus medication have found their way into the public consciousness. From March 10, 1986, when “Prozac,” the most well known anti-depressant to-date, first appeared in print in The New York Times, through December, 2002, 373 news pieces containing the word “Prozac” were published in The New York Times. A content analysis of a sample of articles, letters, and book reviews published in the Times during this period containing the word “Prozac” in the text, reveals the themes featured in this public debate. Preliminary analysis indicates significant ambivalence about the use of medication in treating depression. Negative characterizations of psychiatric medication in the popular media may discourage individuals from seeking treatment for depression, particularly pharmacotherapy, and may lead to increased stigma for people who suffer from depression. This study is an effort to offer a critical analysis of the public dialogue on this issue, and encourage a debate that takes seriously the issue of mental illness in the United States.

Learning Objectives:

• Participants will gain insight into the debate in mental health concerning the causes of and appropriate treatments for depression.
• Particpants will learn about the trends in New York Times coverage of Prozac over the past 15 years.
• Participants will recogize the themes prominent in this coverage, and the implications they have for public conceptions of the use of medication to treat depression.
• Participants will be better able to evaluate media coverage of psychiatric medication in the context of past coverage, and discern implications those messages may have.
• Participants will recognize the context in which individuals with depression and their families make choices about the use of psyhiatric medication as a treatment option.

Keywords: Mental Illness, Psychiatric Epidemiology

Awards: The Kenneth Lutterman Award for Exemplary Student Papers in Mental Health - Honorable Mention

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.