Music and Madness

Charting the career of a man who has always been respected for his compassion, quirky way of thinking and fearless opposition to orthodox psychiatry, Ivor Browne tells here of how he came to each one of his conclusions. Ivor Browne has had a positive input into Irish life on both sides of the border. As a young man he was given a fellowship to Harvard University where he studied Public and Community Mental Health. He returned to Ireland determined to put what he had learned into practice and his initiative took the care of mental patients away from large institutions into the community. He conceived and was director of the Irish Foundation for Human Development.This set up the first Community Association in Ireland in Ballyfermot, one of the early housing estates in Dublin. Ballyfermot was a housing estate without any facilities, yet with a professional team Browne helped the residents to turn it into a thriving working-class community. This project was so successful that an offshoot was established in Derry, called the Inner City Trust which not only rebuilt, but transformed the city of Derry.

Ivor Browne was Professor of Psychiatry at University College, Dublin and Chief Psychiatrist of the Eastern Health Board.