Loren Mosher
Encyclopedia
Loren Richard Mosher was an American psychiatrist
, clinical professor
of psychiatry
, expert on schizophrenia
and the chief of the Center for Studies of Schizophrenia in the National Institute of Mental Health
(1968—1980). Mosher spent all his professional career seeking more humane and effective treatment for people diagnosed as having schizophrenia and was instrumental in developing an innovative, residential, home-like, non-hospital, non-drug treatment model for newly identified acutely psychotic persons.
Loren Mosher founded the Soteria
experience, having showed that treating psychosis also in the acute phase is possible without using restraint methods.
He was dismissed from the National Institute of Mental Health, and later resigned from the American Psychiatric Association
in 1998, for controversially disagreeing with prevailing psychiatric practice
and the influence of pharmaceutical companies.
, to the married couple of a teacher and boat builder. He earned his undergraduate degree
from Stanford University
and his medical degree
from Harvard University
, starting work at NIMH in 1964. He undertook research training at the Tavistock Clinic
in London from 1966 to 1967 and developed an interest in alternative treatments for schizophrenia.
The house, known as Soteria
, was opened in an area of San Jose, California
, in April 1971. Mosher believed that the violent and controlling atmosphere of psychiatric hospitals and the over-use of drugs hindered recovery. Despite its success (it achieved superior results than the standard medical treatment with drugs
), the Soteria Project closed in 1983 when, according to Loren Mosher and Robert Whitaker
further funding was denied because of the politics of psychiatry that was increasingly controlled by the influence of pharmaceutical companies.
Mosher is said to have had a far more nuanced view of the use of drugs
than has been generally thought, and did not reject drugs altogether but insisted they be used as a last resort and in far lower doses than usual in the United States.
After dismissal from NIMH, he taught psychiatry at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
in Bethesda
and became head of the public mental health system in Montgomery County. He started a crisis house in Rockville
, McAuliffe House, based on Soteria principles.
During the Ritalin phenomenon of the 1990s, he was often featured as a dissenting view in scores of articles. He was the founder and first editor in chief of Schizophrenia Bulletin
.
Mosher edited or co-authored some books, including Community Mental Health: A Practical Guide, and published more than 100 reviews and articles. He held professorships and ran mental health programmes on both the US coasts. Mosher also headed his own consulting company, Soteria Associates, providing research, forensic and mental health consultation and cooperated for years with numerous advocacy groups, including the psychiatric survivor group MindFreedom International
.
Dr. Mosher moved to San Diego from Washington in 1996. He became clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of California at San Diego medical school.
He was married to, and later divorced, Irene Carleton Mosher.
At the time of his death he was in Berlin for experimental cancer treatment.
Survivors included his wife, Judy Schreiber, three children from the first marriage, a granddaughter, and two brothers.
Jeanne Lenzer (2004) Obituary: Loren Mosher BMJ 2004;329:463 (21 August)
Psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
, clinical professor
Clinical Professor
Clinical Professor is an academic appointment made to a member of a profession who is associated with a university and engages in practical instruction of professional students. It generally does not offer a "tenure track," but can be either full or part time, and is typically noted for its...
of psychiatry
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
, expert on schizophrenia
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of thought processes and of emotional responsiveness. It most commonly manifests itself as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking, and it is accompanied by significant social...
and the chief of the Center for Studies of Schizophrenia in the National Institute of Mental Health
National Institute of Mental Health
The National Institute of Mental Health is one of 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health...
(1968—1980). Mosher spent all his professional career seeking more humane and effective treatment for people diagnosed as having schizophrenia and was instrumental in developing an innovative, residential, home-like, non-hospital, non-drug treatment model for newly identified acutely psychotic persons.
Loren Mosher founded the Soteria
Soteria
Soteria is a community service that provides a space for people experiencing mental distress or crisis. Based on a recovery model, common elements of the Soteria approach include primarily non-medical staffing; preserving resident's personal power, social networks, and communal responsibilities;...
experience, having showed that treating psychosis also in the acute phase is possible without using restraint methods.
He was dismissed from the National Institute of Mental Health, and later resigned from the American Psychiatric Association
American Psychiatric Association
The American Psychiatric Association is the main professional organization of psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the most influential worldwide. Its some 38,000 members are mainly American but some are international...
in 1998, for controversially disagreeing with prevailing psychiatric practice
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
and the influence of pharmaceutical companies.
Biography
Loren Mosher was born on the 3rd of September 1933 in Monterey, CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, to the married couple of a teacher and boat builder. He earned his undergraduate degree
Undergraduate degree
An undergraduate degree is a colloquial term for an academic degree taken by a person who has completed undergraduate courses. It is usually offered at an institution of higher education, such as a university...
from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and his medical degree
Medical degree
A medical degree is, broadly defined, any academic degree which places its holder in a position to engage in the practice of medicine. BBC has reported that Medicine related degree programs such as MBBS, BDS and PharmD are the most difficult degree programs of all the other Bachelor degree programs...
from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, starting work at NIMH in 1964. He undertook research training at the Tavistock Clinic
Tavistock Clinic
The in London was founded in 1920 by Dr. Hugh Crichton-Miller, a psychiatrist who developed psychological treatments for shell-shocked soldiers during and after the First World War. The clinic's first patient was, however, a child. Its clinical services were always, therefore, for both children...
in London from 1966 to 1967 and developed an interest in alternative treatments for schizophrenia.
The house, known as Soteria
Soteria
Soteria is a community service that provides a space for people experiencing mental distress or crisis. Based on a recovery model, common elements of the Soteria approach include primarily non-medical staffing; preserving resident's personal power, social networks, and communal responsibilities;...
, was opened in an area of San Jose, California
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
, in April 1971. Mosher believed that the violent and controlling atmosphere of psychiatric hospitals and the over-use of drugs hindered recovery. Despite its success (it achieved superior results than the standard medical treatment with drugs
), the Soteria Project closed in 1983 when, according to Loren Mosher and Robert Whitaker
Robert Whitaker (author)
Robert Whitaker is an American journalist and author, writing primarily about medicine, science, and history.- Early career :He was a medical writer at the Albany Times Union newspaper, in Albany, N.Y., from 1989 to 1994. In 1992, he was a Knight Science Journalism fellow at MIT. Following that...
further funding was denied because of the politics of psychiatry that was increasingly controlled by the influence of pharmaceutical companies.
Mosher is said to have had a far more nuanced view of the use of drugs
DRUGS
Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows are an American post-hardcore band formed in 2010. They released their debut self-titled album on February 22, 2011.- Formation :...
than has been generally thought, and did not reject drugs altogether but insisted they be used as a last resort and in far lower doses than usual in the United States.
After dismissal from NIMH, he taught psychiatry at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences is a health science university run by the U.S. federal government. The primary mission of the school is to prepare graduates for service to the U.S. at home and abroad in the medical corps....
in Bethesda
Bethesda
Bethesda , originally referring to the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem , may also refer to:-United States:*Bethesda, Davidson County, North Carolina...
and became head of the public mental health system in Montgomery County. He started a crisis house in Rockville
Rockville
-Places:Australia*Rockville, a suburb in the city of Toowoomba, QueenslandCanada*Rockville, Nova ScotiaIreland*Rockville, formerly a landed estate in County Roscommon, near the Shannon; home of one branch of the Lloyd family and focus of the Rockville Navigation...
, McAuliffe House, based on Soteria principles.
During the Ritalin phenomenon of the 1990s, he was often featured as a dissenting view in scores of articles. He was the founder and first editor in chief of Schizophrenia Bulletin
Schizophrenia Bulletin
Schizophrenia Bulletin is a peer-reviewed medical journal which covers research relating to the etiology and treatment of schizophrenia. The journal is published bimonthly by Oxford University Press in association with the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center and Schizophrenia International...
.
Mosher edited or co-authored some books, including Community Mental Health: A Practical Guide, and published more than 100 reviews and articles. He held professorships and ran mental health programmes on both the US coasts. Mosher also headed his own consulting company, Soteria Associates, providing research, forensic and mental health consultation and cooperated for years with numerous advocacy groups, including the psychiatric survivor group MindFreedom International
MindFreedom International
MindFreedom International is an international coalition of over one hundred grassroots groups and thousands of individual members from fourteen nations. It was founded in 1990 to advocate against forced medication, medical restraints, and involuntary electroconvulsive therapy. Its stated mission is...
.
Dr. Mosher moved to San Diego from Washington in 1996. He became clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of California at San Diego medical school.
He was married to, and later divorced, Irene Carleton Mosher.
At the time of his death he was in Berlin for experimental cancer treatment.
Survivors included his wife, Judy Schreiber, three children from the first marriage, a granddaughter, and two brothers.
Mosher archive
His work is archived at Stanford University and can be accessed via their website. Anyone interested in further pursuing his work can arrange to have it brought to the Stanford Green Library.Sources
Adam Bernstein (2004) Contrarian Psychiatrist Loren Mosher, 70 Washington Post, Metro, Obituaries, Tuesday, July 20, Page B06Jeanne Lenzer (2004) Obituary: Loren Mosher BMJ 2004;329:463 (21 August)
External links
- Mosher, Loren M.D. (Chief of the Center for Studies of Schizophrenia at the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health 1969–1980) Still Crazy After All These Years
- Video of Robert WhitakerRobert Whitaker (author)Robert Whitaker is an American journalist and author, writing primarily about medicine, science, and history.- Early career :He was a medical writer at the Albany Times Union newspaper, in Albany, N.Y., from 1989 to 1994. In 1992, he was a Knight Science Journalism fellow at MIT. Following that...
and Loren Mosher discussing the evidence for the Soteria model.