Medical Model

• drug treatments for a schizophrenia work by blocking the dopamine receptors at the post synaptic site so less dopamine is absorbed and message overload doesn’t occur.
• A typical antipsychotic is chlorpromazine which is effective at reducing positive symptoms such as hallucinations and delusions as it blocks dopamine receptors. it is not as effective for negative symptoms and strong doses have a sedative effect.

  Thornley- some patients took chlorpromazine and some took a placebo. To an extent symptoms lessened but there was a number of side-effects such as problems with motor control, twitching muscles, drowsiness and feeling sluggish.
• An atypical antipsychotic is clozapine Which works by gradually blocking dopamine receptors and influencing serotonin levels. There are fewer side effects and it reduces both positive and negative symptoms. It can cause problems with white blood cells that can turn into other illnesses.

  Sharafi- 10 schizophrenics took chlorpromazine and 10 took clozapine. Psychotic symptoms were taken as well as brain scans to measure brain activity and alleviation of symptoms. Clozapine showed superiority over chlorpromazine.
• Strengths of Antipsychotics

  • Quick and easy- allows symptoms to be controlled within weeks to allow patients to feel and function better and it’s effective
  • Less threatening for an individual in comparison to other treatments such as talking therapies
• Weaknesses of antipsychotics

  • Side effects- motor problems, twitching muscles, sedative effect
  • Dependency- symptoms return if you stop taking them
  • Historically seen as unethical- used to control patients and keep them calm which is dehumanising
• A strength of the medical model is that it has provided lots of practical applications such as the medications created to improve life. It was found that high levels of dopamine cause schizophrenia therefore dopamine blockers were created. This is a strength as it means people can function better in their lives as their symptoms are managed. However, these medications can have severe side-effects that can cause other health problems limiting the usefulness.
• A weakness of the medical model is that it can be seen as socially sensitive as the research can lead to labelling of certain groups. Gottesman found high concordance rates for schizophrenia and bipolar in families so if a parent or both has a disorder, it makes a child more likely to develop it. This is a problem as labelling a child as a potential risk may cause people to treat them differently and create a self fulfilling prophecy. However, understanding areas that can cause harm to people is beneficial as it can give solutions to problems.