I recently heard an NPR podcast- an interview with Dr Daniel Carlat, the famous (infamous?) author of The Carlat Report . It was a sad but truthful narration. a veritable laundry list of all the demons, the myths and the dark realities of Psychiatry, the undercurrent I find myself wading against every day.
If you like, you could get access to that interview by clicking on this link (thanks Arnab Jijaji!)
Dan Carlat is also known for a piece he wrote in The New York Times called "Dr. Drug Rep".
I've always felt seduced and confused by my feelings about the glamorous world of the pharmaceutical industry. I've implored almost every teacher I've met - "I really really want to enjoy the delicious food and the good wine and the fancy restaurants and the dozens of compliments an MD may receive as a by product of an affiliation with a drug rep! Can you please sell me ONE point that convinces me that I will be enjoying these fun things NOT at the expense of my poverty-stricken, vulnerable, downtrodden, marginalized mentally ill patients ?"
It's been 8 years and I'm still waiting for that one convincing argument. I don't think I've been a particularly difficult or unreasonable listener. I'm just waiting to be dazzled (or budged-I'll take budged). Please! I can almost taste that free, succulent steak..... Won't you help a poor psychiatrist ensnared by his scruples?
