This article discusses sceptical arguments about measurement scales. Measurement scales are part of a promising agenda of openness, transparency and patient and public involvement (PPI) in medical research, but have received critical, sometimes hostile attention from anthropologists. This is because scales repackage localised cultural assumptions about distress as something universal and pan-human and have the capacity to reshape people's interior lives in unhelpful, possibly harmful ways. We take as an example the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Use of the PHQ-9 is currently mandated by major funders. But its history suggests flawed PPI and a lack of openness. The article suggests a constructive role for anthropology in mental health research, using ethnographic evidence and theory to show how, although they have their uses, mental health scales should not be regarded as inert or harmless.

Twenty years ago, the British Journal of Psychiatry published an editorial regarding racism and psychiatry. Three decades ago, the journal published a lecture by Professor Michael Sheperd about Kraepelin's contributions to racist degeneration theories. A century ago, Albert Einstein visited the Brazilian Academy of Sciences, where he was hosted by Juliano Moreira [1872–1933], one of the most distinguished Brazilian scientists of that time. The only son of a former enslaved woman, he is regarded as one of the founding fathers of scientific psychiatry in Brazil. Moreira may have been a case of ‘exceptional racism’, the strategy of praising outstanding people from oppressed groups as a way of denying or covering up processes of structural racism.

In 1978, William Alwyn Lishman's Organic Psychiatry: The Psychological Consequences of Cerebral Disorder was published, fostering the development of neuropsychiatry and leading to the recognition of Lishman as the father of neuropsychiatry. This article is a narrative account of his personal struggles, as well as conceptual dilemmas he dealt with while writing this book, and how through its four editions it has evolved to become an anchor for psychiatrists as they seek to develop understanding of the workings of the brain, and a beacon for them when they discuss clinical implications of diagnosis with patients and families.

Lunatic Asylums, published 130 years ago, is a fascinating insight into how these institutions were managed in the late Victorian era. This brief article considers what it reveals about the zeitgeist of the time and the book's author, the remarkable Charles Mercier.

This paper reflects on a special edition of the journal History of Psychiatry and a related symposium held at Somerville College, Oxford, exploring the innovations in mental healthcare in Oxfordshire led by Dr Bertram Mandelbrote between 1959 and 1988. I draw on clinical culture, biography, mental health policy and my lived experience to understand Mandelbrote's life and work, and his legacy and lessons for contemporary psychiatrists. I explore the ecological niche that Mandelbrote created and conclude with the probable importance of his relationship with Professor Michael Gelder, who led the University of Oxford Department of Psychiatry at the time.

To address some challenges facing psychiatrists today we discuss issues of happenstance and fulfilment in psychiatric careers through some of the record and reflections of four psychiatrists since the 1950s. We trace the changes in psychiatry attendant to the transition from the welfare to the neoliberal state and=its contemporary postmodern culture. We highlight the crucial importance of political-cultural as well as technological developments in determining psychiatric service management and provision, and clinical practice and career outcomes. In the light of this impact, in a global era that some highly respected authorities consider in apocalyptic terms, we advocate for the incorporation of training in political awareness and activism in the psychiatric curriculum and practice. We suggest that this is necessary for social justice and patient welfare and that it will help safeguard psychiatric professionalism, conscience and self-esteem.

The history of the Grange Annual Conference is traced to its roots in the work of Sir William Norwood East, the Royal Medico-Psychological Association and Waddiloves Hospital in Bradford, UK.

We address the unconsciously biased perception of psychiatric disorders, highlighting a hierarchical perspective that favours certain diagnoses over others. We aim to uncover reasons for these inequities, emphasising the need for a shift toward pathophysiology-based nomenclature that can promote equal support for each disorder, enhance treatment adherence and encourage open discussions.

This is areview of an early and important textbook published by Sir William Norwood East.

John Thomas Perceval (1803–1876) was confined first to Dr Fox's private madhouse (asylum) in 1830 and transferred to Mr Newington's madhouse at Ticehurst, Sussex, in 1832 until his release in 1834. His account of his incarceration and treatment was published in two versions, the first in 1838 and the second in 1840. In this article I describe Perceval's psychosis, his treatment and management at Dr Fox's madhouse and his reforming and advocating contributions to psychiatry in the period following his release.

Essays on Partial Derangement of the Mind in Supposed Connection with Religion, written amidst the illness of its author almost two centuries ago, was the little-known work of a distinguished physician. Seeking to rebut the argument that religion is causative of ‘derangement of the mind’ it takes a surprisingly biological view of such conditions while, at the same time, affirming the importance of faith, hope and love in human well-being. Despite its limitations, it makes observations that remain relevant to debates about religion and psychiatry today.

This article offers a review of John Conolly's book of 1847 concerning the construction and administration of asylums for the mentally ill, which gives detailed advice on the selection and management of staff and remarks on the role of the medical superintendent.

Nesidioblastosis is a rare condition of organic persistent hyperinsulinaemic hypoglycaemia, with fewer than 100 cases since it was first recorded. However, an increasing prevalence suggests previous underdiagnosis due to poor knowledge and awareness. This case describes the presentation, clinical decision-making and unique challenges in diagnosis and care of a 21-year-old female with nesidioblastosis and extensive psychiatric comorbidities. She was repeatedly misdiagnosed until 2021, despite having presented to emergency departments with hypoglycaemic symptoms for over 7 years. Her symptoms were often misattributed to behaviours secondary to restrictive anorexia nervosa and borderline personality disorder. Even after appropriate diagnosis and management, she suffered a complicated post-operative course. Patients with psychiatric comorbidities are at higher risk of distress, communication difficulties and inadequate social support, all of which could be better managed with increased multidisciplinary collaboration between endocrine, surgery, psychiatry, pain management and social work. This study highlights the importance of well-rounded patient care that addresses all facets of patient health. This approach not only improves quality of care, but also reduces overall readmissions, revisions, morbidity and mortality.

John Bowlby's ‘Attachment and Loss’ trilogy set the scene for half a century of attachment research and theorising. This article picks out the key themes of his work – the attachment dynamic, the impact of trauma and life events, defensive exclusion, loss and bereavement, and internal working models – and points to their continuing relevance.

Stengel, Cook and Kreeger's Attempted Suicide is the most sustained early attempt to draw out the social setting of an attempt at suicide. It is part of a real flourishing of social psychiatry in the UK and reinforces a productive model for collaboration between research psychiatrists and psychiatric social workers in the 1950s and 1960s. The sheer amount of work required for a robust social setting, charting the social repercussions for an attempt at suicide, is laid bare in this text.

Norway has, according to the World Health Organization, more psychiatrists engaged in public health services per head of population than any other country, and the proportionate numbers of psychologists and others engaged in mental healthcare are also among the world's highest. Approximately 10% of Norway's gross domestic product is spent on health, expenditure per capita that is the fourth highest internationally. We discuss how this wealth of expertise translates into the delivery of services to the public.