‘Attention-seeking’ behaviour and Prejudice Amongst Professionals.
Amongst health professionals of all studies; whether nurse, general practitioner, psychiatrist, health care assistant or counselor (to name a few), I have noticed a popular tendency to dismiss irrational, self-destructive or otherwise ‘unwell’ behaviour as being ‘attention-seeking’.
The stigma of mental illness is terrible enough outside of the mental health services. For instance, while staying at Ashburn Clinic, an inpatient treatment facility in Dunedin, a simple walk to the dairy down the road could lead to jeers and stares from passing cars whose occupants are familiar with Ashburn’s function. But when this insidious laziness is apparent within the mental health services themselves - I cannot be scathing enough. People suffering from different forms of mental illness rely upon these practitioners for their understanding. It simply is not good enough to dismiss a patient with a prescription and a few snide notes for their medical records.
It is acceptable to identify people as displaying ‘attention-seeking behaviour’, but only if that is followed up by an attempt to understand exactly what that person is after. Attention-seeking is not an answer in itself, it is a question: What is this person desperately in need of? Why? What has happened in this person’s past and upbringing that has left them bereft of this nurturance and attention?
These are the kind of questions that every health practitioner should be seeking answers to, rather than dismissing a person as ‘attention-seeking’ and assuming that the best course of action is to ignore the client’s cries for help.
I will give you one of the many examples of this attitude I have come across. My mother suffered from severe mental illness for 16 years before her suicide in 2003. On being returned to Tauranga after a few weeks at the Starship Child and Family Unit in 2007, I became physically ill. I had an eye infection and my self-harm wounds were also becoming infected. I took the natural course of action and went to my general practitioner. She took it upon herself to warn me, unprompted, not to get into ‘attention-seeking behaviour like [my] mother did’. And that was that. Her final judgement upon my mother and myself. Naturally, I never went back to this general practitioner.
Using the term ‘attention-seeking’ as a way to dismiss a person and their problems is unacceptable and yet the health services are riddled with this attitude. It is also dangerous, as regardless of whether a person appears to be trying to get attention, you should always err on the side of caution, lest they should in fact harm themselves or others. If this happens, it is the health professional that is at fault for their prejudice.
The stigma of mental illness is terrible enough outside of the mental health services. For instance, while staying at Ashburn Clinic, an inpatient treatment facility in Dunedin, a simple walk to the dairy down the road could lead to jeers and stares from passing cars whose occupants are familiar with Ashburn’s function. But when this insidious laziness is apparent within the mental health services themselves - I cannot be scathing enough. People suffering from different forms of mental illness rely upon these practitioners for their understanding. It simply is not good enough to dismiss a patient with a prescription and a few snide notes for their medical records.
It is acceptable to identify people as displaying ‘attention-seeking behaviour’, but only if that is followed up by an attempt to understand exactly what that person is after. Attention-seeking is not an answer in itself, it is a question: What is this person desperately in need of? Why? What has happened in this person’s past and upbringing that has left them bereft of this nurturance and attention?
These are the kind of questions that every health practitioner should be seeking answers to, rather than dismissing a person as ‘attention-seeking’ and assuming that the best course of action is to ignore the client’s cries for help.
I will give you one of the many examples of this attitude I have come across. My mother suffered from severe mental illness for 16 years before her suicide in 2003. On being returned to Tauranga after a few weeks at the Starship Child and Family Unit in 2007, I became physically ill. I had an eye infection and my self-harm wounds were also becoming infected. I took the natural course of action and went to my general practitioner. She took it upon herself to warn me, unprompted, not to get into ‘attention-seeking behaviour like [my] mother did’. And that was that. Her final judgement upon my mother and myself. Naturally, I never went back to this general practitioner.
Using the term ‘attention-seeking’ as a way to dismiss a person and their problems is unacceptable and yet the health services are riddled with this attitude. It is also dangerous, as regardless of whether a person appears to be trying to get attention, you should always err on the side of caution, lest they should in fact harm themselves or others. If this happens, it is the health professional that is at fault for their prejudice.