Mental Recovery and Society in The Soloist - Book Report/Review Example

 Chapters 6-12– The Soloist Main points: In Chapter 6, Steve meets with Richard van Horn to discuss what to do with Tony’s mental illness. Van Horn refers Steve to Dr. Mark Ragins to get further help. Dr. Ragins teaches Steve about what the mental illness medical model is compared to his recovery model. In Chapter 7, Steve worries for Tony, so he decides to spend the night with him. Chapter 8 narrates Joseph Russo, Tony’s classmate in Juilliard, who talks about Tony’s talent and the first signs of the latter’s mental illness. In Chapter 9, Tony speaks about his treatment in Cleveland. Steve meets Stella March, a mother with a son who has schizophrenia and is the same age as Tony, and who is an advocate for mental health system changes. They discuss social stigma that Tom Cruise reinforces with his insensitive remarks about the mental illness of Brooke Shields and that disable families from getting treatment for their sick family members. In Chapter 10, Alexis Rivera watches Tony perform. Rivera has a club and asks Tony if he can play there to share his music. Steve invites two psychiatrists with different treatment models, Dr. Vera Prchal, a practitioner of the recovery model, and Dr. Rod Shaner, who prefers the traditional medical model, to help make the best treatment plan for Tony. In Rivera’s club, Tony struggles to play in front of an audience, but when he switches from violin to cello, he plays much better. In Chapter 11, Steve plans to move to the Central Coast with his family, but feels guilty that he is leaving Tony behind. In Chapter 12, Tony and Steve attend a concert of the Los Angeles Philharmonic that Tony enjoys. Summary: In the novel, The Soloist, pages 46-120, Steve meets with different people to know more about Tony’s illness and how he can help him. In Chapter 6, Steve meets with Richard van Horn to discuss what to do with Tony’s mental illness. Van Horn advises Steve to go to The Village to ask advice from a mental health doctor, Mark Ragins. Steve observes as Dr. Ragins handles an outpatient, David, who says he is schizophrenic. Dr. Ragins says that he rejects the medical model that focuses too much on medication and hospitalization. He prefers building trust with patients to help know more about their own goals as people, which is the foundation of his recovery model. These goals are important to motivating patients to cope with their illness. Ragins argues that mental illness is not about curing the disease but treating the person through helping the mentally ill integrate into a community that accepts them and helps support their services, so that they can be productive and independent to some extent. Ragins is successful because the staff who work with him are not doctors or health care professionals, but once-mentally-ill patients like David. In Chapter 7, Steve worries for Tony so he decides to spend the night with him. Tony is suspicious with this request but is okay with it. He says he sleeps at Toy District. Toy District looks very unsafe to Steve who sees dealers, prostitutes, addicts, and thugs everywhere. Tony arrives and he does not mind the rats and trouble around him. He says he is comfortable in a place he knows and does not like the idea of being in a room that feels like prison. Steve feels the injustice of the world when war veterans and talented people like Tony do not get the health care services and support they need to have better lives. Chapter 8 narrates Joseph Russo, Tony’s classmate in Juilliard, who talks about Tony’s talent and the first signs of his mental illness. In Chapter 9, Tony speaks about his treatment in Cleveland. He remembers shock treatment that he hated and medication that calmed him down. Steve meets Stella March, a mother with a son who has schizophrenia and is the same age as Tony, and who is an advocate for mental health system changes. They talk about Tom Cruise who told the media that the mentally ill only need vitamins, not psychiatry or psychology, to get better. They discuss social stigma that Cruise reinforces and which disable families from getting treatment for their ill family members. In Chapter 10, Alexis Rivera watches Tony perform. Tony impresses him. Rivera has a club and asks Tony if he can play there to share his music. Tony agrees. Steve invites two psychiatrists with different treatment models, Dr. Vera Prchal, a practitioner of the recovery model, and Dr. Rod Shaner, who prefers the traditional medical model. These psychiatrists can help Steve find the best treatment for Tony while watching him play. Tony struggles to play in front of an audience, but when he switches from violin to cello, he plays much better. In Chapter 11, Steve plans to move to the Central Coast with his family, but feels guilty that he is leaving Tony behind. Tony is having angry outbursts on the stage too in the club, which means he is not ready for a permanent job. John Carroll, the man who hired Steve, is resigning because of budget cuts and Tony thinks about what he should do next with his career. Steve meets Carla Jacobs who believes that the seriously mentally ill should get treatment, even when forced on them. In Chapter 12, Tony and Steve attend a concert of the Los Angeles Philharmonic at Disney Hall. Tony seems quite normal with his charming and intelligent self showing up as he interacted with musicians and others who work for Disney Hall. Personal Response: It must be so hard for Steve to help Tony because he is not a doctor. He is just a reporter who does not know much about mental illness. I appreciate how he takes care of Tony as a friend, not just as a means for writing columns. I agree with Dr. Ragins that, for the mentally ill who are not yet fully delusional and violent, they have high chances of having some form of a good life with enough community support from doctors and people who truly care for their welfare. As for Steve’s frustration with the government and the health care system about mental illness, I can only imagine how he feels. In our family, we also have some stigma against the mentally ill, not because we hate them, but because we do not have direct experience with them. Because of this book, I am starting to learn more about how the mentally ill are also like normal people who have deep social and emotional issues. The mentally ill do not need ill judgment, but respect and support. Finally, I honestly do not know too what to do with Tony. One moment he is brilliant and calm and then he is suspicious, violent, and anxious the next. I think he needs a combination of medication and recovery treatment, though he needs more of relationship-based therapy. Tony needs help through helping him go through the sources of his mental problems. Questions: What can society do for the mentally ill who have both violent outbursts and moments of calmness and normalcy? Should society support the recovery model more than the medical model? Vocabulary: qualms (p.112)- a feeling of being uneasy because of doubt or fear. non sequiturs (p.68)- conclusions or statements that do not follow logically from the previous statements or arguments. Read More