Stigma and Discrimination

A position paper developed by the Canadian Psychiatric Association 's Stigma- Discrimination Working Group and approved by the CPA's Board of Directors on July >:8, 2011.

Introduction

Decreasing stigma and discrimination against people with mental illness and their families, and mental health professionals and systems is of the highest priority for Canadian psychiatrists and organized psychiatry. Across the globe, there has been increasing attention to the deleterious effects of stigma and discrimination and calls for psychiatrists to take on key roles in combating stigma and working toward its abolition.'�2 Notwithstanding gains during the past century in decreasing …