It's all in the mind

Since autism was first identified a medical model has prevailed in which autism is viewed as a problem for the individual and society. This guided a 'cure' approach to eradicate autism. More recently, autism is now considered in the context of development. The developmental journey depends not only on the individual's constitution but also on how they are perceived by others. Negative perception, which is common, risks individuals being excluded from society and denied the developmental opportunities afforded to others. This talk explores the serious consequences of being misperceived.

This talk will give an overview of what schizophrenia is, what the current treatments are and the gaps that exist in current treatments, we will then explore our understanding of the causes with a focus on dopamine system, this will then be followed by discussing latest developments in pharmacogenomics and how this could be used to personalise treatments going forward