Amotivational syndrome: the real management problem of schizophrenia

Impaired insight is a prominent feature of the schizophrenic syndrome, and failure to take major tranquillizers by the oral route has resulted in many relapses. The introduction of the long-acting phenothiazine fluphenazine enanthate (Moditen Enanthate) has greatly facilitated the control of the florid symptoms of this disorder by transferring most of the responsibility for phenothiazine administration from the patients to the clinic or family physician. The educational maturing process, to enable these patients to cope with the challenges of adult life and the reality of their condition, can be handled more effectively through a therapeutic team approach, operating within the framework of a structured program, than by the traditional psychiatrist/patient relationship alone.