Ambitious but uneven ... Provocative ... Kidia’s conclusions are compelling, but by now they are somewhat familiar ... There are so many threads in Empire of Madness that it is no wonder Kidia cannot tie them all together.
What do patients actually need from medicine? And what is the doctor’s role in delivering it to them? Kidia insists on the hybrid role of physician-advocate, duty bound to use their institutional authority to push for structural change in the wider world ... Makes an eloquent case for the practice of 'social prescribing,' in which health care workers 'prescribe (sometimes via literal written prescriptions) social and structural resources' ... In essence, Kidia has written us a prescription for more humanity, both at the structural and interpersonal levels ... As he shows over and over, there is no shortage of evidence that more humanity—whether in the form of time with friends and family, a connection to our community, or a welfare state that underpins a dignified life—is the cure for what ails us.
Difficult to sum up succinctly ... The knotty problems Kidia catalogs have complex histories, and their solutions are just as complex. In a moment when snake oil seems to be the currency du jour, his candor is refreshing.
Deeply researched ... Current treatments rely on medication and talk therapy, which the author asserts are sometimes helpful but largely insufficient. It’s a complex story to tell, and it requires patience and an open mind in the reader. Every time you think the author is going off on a tangent, he succeeds in connecting things back to mental health. An ambitious take on the diagnosis and treatment of mental health issues viewed through a cross-cultural lens.
