Kenyon Stanley COMM 614 10 November 2010 Outline for discussion leader I. Summary a.

Randall Patrick McMurphy is a convict serving a short sentence in the prison system his noncompliant behavior leads him to the state mental hospital for evaluation. With less than 90 days left on his sentence, McMurphy simply wants to do his time and become a free man. However, after befriending several fellow mental patients, McMurphy becomes disgusted with the hospitals methods of exacting compliance and then begins to antagonize the most prolific abuser of power, Nurse Mildred Ratched. The movie is a compelling argument against the unethical treatment of the mentally ill during the 1970s. Scene a. After failing to gain a majority vote to change policy and watch the World Series, McMurphy attempts to rally the patients during a therapy session. b. Nurse Ratcheds nonverbal reveal her disgust with McMurphys attempts to circumvent her authority. c. Nurse Ratcheds response to McMurphys successful campaign reveals that she values control and compliance over care. i. The end of the movie highlights the potential evil that unethical policies (written or unwritten) can have on the marginalized. Health Care Communication Ethics (Chapter 11) a. According to Christopher Lasch (1991), hope and responsiveness are mutually inclusive entities in health care communication (p. 192). b. Nurse Ratched could care less about the patients hopes and dreams. Instead she relishes as master of her little world of power and dominance. c. According to R.C. Arnett, J.M. Harden Fritz & L.M. Bell (2009), Responsiveness points to the way we engage others and ourselves in times of health-related need. i. How does Nurse Ratched engage the group when her patients challenge her? ii. What do her nonverbal cues suggest? iii. When McMurphy ultimately constructs a new game, how does Nurse Ratched react? iv. Based on this scene, what are your impressions of McMurphy and Nurse Ratched? v. Does anyone have any stories about the treatment of the mentally ill?

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From the 70s to today. a. Although the current philosophy of exacting compliance over providing care is less prevalent, now it seems that the mentally ill are left to fend for themselves on the streets. i. 25-30% of the residents at the mens shelter have severe mental illness. ii. There is not one person clinically trained to diagnose and treat mentally ill patients at the shelter. iii. This practice of forgetting the forgotten is commonplace across the United States. How is our responsiveness?

References Arnett, R.C., Harden Fritz, J.M. & Bell, L.M. (2009) Communication Ethics Literacy. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Producers Zaentz, S. & Douglas, M. (Producers), & Director, M. Forman (Director). (1975). One flew over the cuckoos nest. [Motion picture]. United States of America: Fantasy Films.