We have written our Policy Position Paper #4 on Gender Discrimination and Inequality to o eliminate and prevent discrimination and inequality against consumers on the basis of gender and gender identity.
But why is this necessary?
The issues:
Psychiatry has a long history of discrimination against women and gender diverse individuals. Diagnoses such as Borderline Personality Disorder (‘BPD’), Histrionic Personality Disorder (‘HPD’) and Gender Dysphoria are based on outdated, stigmatizing and restrictive attitudes about gender and gender roles.
Read our full position paper and more about the issues here.
Gender discrimination in the intersection between psychiatry & the law is rife. Axis 1 diagnosis are seen as exculpatory yet the axis 2 disorders are generally not. This needs to change. The eitology of Bpd stems from childhood trauma or temperament sensitives early on. Why punish people for abuse in their childhoods? Looking a the pathways literature in women’s entry into crime, tells us a lot. We need to stop discrimination against women in clinical mental health praxis.