The Citizens Commission on Human Rights of Florida is advocating for a complete ban on electroshock therapy, highlighting potential risks and a lack of scientific validation for the controversial treatment, particularly when applied to young children. Psychiatrists administer electroconvulsive therapy to about 100,000 people each year in the United States, but the procedure involves sending up to 460 volts of electricity through a patient's brain without the Federal Drug Administration requiring comprehensive clinical studies to prove safety or effectiveness. The organization emphasizes alarming concerns, noting similarities to grand mal seizures, where patients may experience bodily stiffening, involuntary limb jerking, loss of consciousness, and facial discoloration.
Diane Stein, president of the Florida CCHR chapter, argues that electroshock therapy represents experimental and potentially dangerous medical guesswork. Experts like Ron Bassman, executive director of MindFreedom International, and attorney Jim Gottstein have shared perspectives underscoring the treatment's devastating consequences; Bassman, who underwent shock therapy, experienced significant memory loss, while Gottstein describes it as causing permanent memory loss and closed head injury. Most critically, the CCHR points out that ECT is being administered to children under five years old, a practice they consider particularly egregious, challenging psychiatric claims about efficacy even as proponents admit uncertainty about why it might work.
Stein also referenced a study suggesting patients receiving ECT were 16 times more likely to attempt suicide compared to those not receiving the treatment, further highlighting potential dangers. The ongoing debate raises important questions about patient rights, medical ethics, and the necessity of rigorous scientific validation for psychiatric treatments, with the CCHR's advocacy aiming to spur broader scrutiny and regulatory action. For more information on related advocacy efforts, visit https://www.cchrflorida.org.
