Florida Mental Health Watchdog Hosts Weekly Educational Events on Patient Rights and Alternative Treatments

The Florida chapter of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, an award-winning nonprofit mental health human rights organization, hosts regular events educating Floridians on mental health laws and the physical conditions that can mimic psychiatric disorders. As a primary activity, CCHR provides mental health information as a public service, having held over one thousand events since opening new offices in downtown Clearwater with attorneys, doctors, and clinical pharmacists as guest speakers.

These professionals provide attendees with information on Florida's mental health law, commonly known as the Baker Act, individual rights under the law, and how underlying physical ailments and misdiagnosed nutritional situations can result in people being falsely labeled as mentally ill. Attorney Carmen Miller, a former assistant public defender with personal experience representing Baker Act clients, regularly delivers seminars on mental health law and has hosted Advance Mental Health Directive workshops where attendees learn about psychiatric living wills and how to protect themselves from unwanted mental health treatments such as electroshock.

During the Psychiatric Disorders & Their Underlying Physical Causes seminar, Alternative Medicine Professional Dr. Jared Roscoe explains how psychiatric drugs affect the body and why this moves patients away from actual healing. Clinical Pharmacist Pamela Seefeld covers the potentially devastating side effects of drugging children, how prescription psychotropic drugs affect children, and how to treat mental health naturally. The organization, initially established by the Church of Scientology and renowned psychiatrist Dr. Thomas Szasz in 1969, maintains a mission to eradicate abuses committed under the guise of mental health and enact patient and consumer protections.

The complimentary seminars, workshops, and events differ each month, providing ongoing education about mental health human rights and alternative approaches to treatment. The organization's work brings attention to the importance of informed consent and the need for thorough medical evaluation before psychiatric diagnosis, addressing concerns about potential misdiagnosis and the long-term effects of psychiatric medications on both adults and children.