Danes debate excess of forced electric shock therapy:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
Psychiatrists in Denmark are in uproar over the number of patients forcibly treated with electric shock therapy. The ministry of health says it is ready to discuss the matter, but will not immediately begin an investigation. The latest figures, from 1998, show that 197 patients were forcibly treated with shock therapy and this number has now grown to between 200 to 300, reports Jyllandsposten. Many psychiatrists have called for a ban on forced electric shock therapy, but Sind, the largest Danish interest group for mental illnesses, has made it clear that the therapy may be employed if the patient's life is deemed to be in danger.