Dr. Susan Finnerty:

There are various means of treating somebody with a mental illness. When people are seriously mentally ill, psychotic or suicidal, sometimes they need medication for a period of time to get over that hump. The other talking therapies, and support in the community and so on, should kick in at that stage, but that does not always happen because the services are understaffed. People may stay on medication for longer than they should be. Certain groups of people need to stay on medication to keep them well and functioning in the community.