This week at the APA (American Psychiatric Association) Actor Alan Alda joined Dr. Lieberman and Nobel Prize winner Dr. Eric Kandel to discuss the impact that science and the media have on psychiatry and how this will influence the future of mental health care.

Alan Alda’s mother had schizophrenia and he discussed this at length in his autobiography “Never Have Your Dog Stuffed, and Other Things I Have Learned“.  “”She thought people were trying to kill her. She thought I was trying to kill her. She thought I was trying to kill her very often,” Alda said”  He has shown an ongoing interest in mental health and science education.

Alda, who is best known for his portrayal of the character Hawkeye Pierce on the TV show “M*A*S*H*,” also hosted the PBS series “Scientific American Frontiers” for 11 years. He also hosted the show, “Brains on Trial,” in 2013, and has won the National Science Board’s Public Service Award for his efforts in broadening the public’s understanding of science.

An interesting video discussion is included below, the discussion on mental health starts around 33 minutes and 45 seconds into the video.  The focus areas include Stigma, misunderstandings of “normal” and how we can change and reduce stigma.