The unemployment problem is even more severe among people with mental health problems, civic groups and doctors said yesterday, with almost 66 percent of those afflicted unable to find a job in the past year.
For people with schizophrenia, the most important thing they hope medication can do for them is to “be able to go to work or school,” a survey by the Alliance for the Mentally Ill found.
The survey of schizophrenics and their families was conducted by the alliance’s centers nationwide and a total of 233 effective samples were collected out of the 300 surveys handed out.
“The survey showed that about 90 percent of schizophrenia patients live with their families or friends, and almost 70 percent of them are not in school or employed. We can imagine how much of a burden this puts on their families,” project director Eva Teng (滕西華) said.
“Twenty percent say they are not satisfied with their current medication,” Teng said.
The main reasons cited for dissatisfaction with medication was that the drugs “do not make me feel well” (50 percent), “affect daily activities” (37 percent), “prevent me from holding a job” (34 percent) and “affect my social life” (28 percent).
“Aside from hallucinations, schizophrenia patients also have difficulty registering facial expressions, lack motivation and have a tendency to avoid social engagements. These are often the reasons why many people with schizophrenia have difficulty finding employment or developing relationships,” said Chou Yuan-hwa (周元華), a psychiatrist at the Taipei Veterans General Hospital.
Although the unemployment problem nationwide has worsened, it is an even greater problem for the mentally ill, Teng said.
“About 20 to 30 percent of the mentally ill are [involuntarily] unemployed,” she said.
“If more doctors cared about their patients’ social skills instead of only prescribing medications, then more patients could become active members of society,” she said.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
AMENDMENT: Contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau must be reported, and failure to comply could result in a prison sentence, the proposal stated The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) yesterday voted against a proposed bill by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers that would require elected officials to seek approval before visiting China. DPP Legislator Puma Shen’s (沈伯洋) proposed amendments to the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), stipulate that contact with certain individuals in China, Hong Kong and Macau should be reported, while failure to comply would be punishable by prison sentences of up to three years, alongside a fine of NT$10 million (US$309,041). Fifty-six voted with the TPP in opposition
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai