Schizophrenia Bulletin vol. 41 no. 5 pp. 999–1000, 2015 doi:10.1093/schbul/sbv081 Advance Access publication June 24, 2015

2015 Wayne Fenton Award for Exceptional Clinical Care The Wayne Fenton Award for Exceptional Clinical Care was established in 2007 to recognize clinical providers who exemplify Dr Fenton’s commitment to improving the daily lives of individuals with schizophrenia.

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I am delighted to summarize how Dr Patricia Deegan honors the memory of Dr Wayne Fenton and his commitment to improving the daily lives of individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia. A psychologist, Dr Deegan was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teenager. She experienced the hospitalizations, hallucinations, and the hopelessness associated with this diagnosis. As summarized in a Forbes Magazine interview, “She vowed to defy the prognosis of doom, return to school, become ‘Dr. Deegan’ and change the mental health system.”1 Her receipt of this award reflects her contributions to achieving her vision of empowerment, choice, and stakeholder partnership that has guided the transformation of mental health services. After receiving her PhD in clinical psychology, Dr Deegan directed a large mental health agency before assuming the role of Director of the Program for People With Psychiatric Disabilities at the Northeast Independent Living Program. She developed one of the first ex-patient run programs for people with psychiatric disabilities in an independent living, cross disability center. Pat went on to become a Co-founder and the Director of Training for the National Empowerment Center (1992–2001), a national technical assistance center that develops and disseminates information about recovery from mental illness, personal and collective empowerment, and recovery oriented practices for mental health systems. In 1997, Dr Deegan told Ira Glass on This American Life2 that she and colleagues realized mental health workers could achieve greater understanding of their patients if they could experience voices. They thus created a simulation of the voice hearing experience, an innovative effort that exemplifies how respectfully and collaboratively Pat approaches her goals of creating empathy and empowerment. In 2001, Pat created Pat Deegan PhD & Associates, a company she still leads and which has allowed her to develop ground breaking products that facilitate her vision3–5. Most notable is CommonGround, a web-based application that helps individuals prepare to meet with psychiatrists and optimize treatment decisions. CommonGround focuses not only on medications but also on self-management strategies. CommonGround promotes “Personal Medicine” strategies, defined as “what we do to be well.” CommonGround received the Psychiatric Services Gold Achievement Award in 2013 and the Scattergood Foundation 2013 Innovation Award in Behavioral Health. Pat’s visionary ideas, regarding shared decision making combined with her capacity to operationalize and transform those ideas into tools, has put her in the forefront of the imperative to develop a real person-centered system of care. In recognition of her accomplishments, she has received an array of awards and has a significant media presence. She has been interviewed by US News and World Report, Forbes Magazine, U.S.A. Today, CNN, and This American Life (NPR). When Pat speaks, she opens the eyes and hearts of listeners of every stripe—mental health professionals, consumers, family members, and the general public. My personal enthusiasm for Dr Deegan’s nomination stems from our work together as part of the Recovery After an Initial Schizophrenia Episode Connection study. She interacted with teams including physicians as part of our technical assistance process. While supporting the physician’s role in shared decision making, she helped physicians understand the consumer perspective. Her technical assistance received rave reviews. She challenged the clinicians to

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navigate the tension between the “duty to care” and the “dignity of risk.” I saw first-hand the brilliance of Pat’s capacity to communicate and train the workforce, improving the lives of individuals with schizophrenia. Lisa Dixon References

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1. http://www.forbes.com/sites/greggfairbrothers/2012/10/03/success-social-value-and-personal-mission-part-one/ 2. http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/52/edge-of-sanity?act=2. 3. www.patdeegan.com/commonground 4. Deegan PE. A web application to support recovery and shared decision making in psychiatric medication clinics. Psychiatr Rehabil J. 2010;34:23–28 5. MacDonald-Willson KL, Deegan PE, Hutchison HL, Parrotta N, Schuster JM. Integrating self-management strategies into mental health service delivery: empowering people in recovery. Psychiatr Rehabil J. 2013;36:258–263.

2015 Wayne Fenton Award for Exceptional Clinical Care.

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