Apologies to Prof. Simon Wessely

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>>>> 7 January 2011 <<<<
Editorship : j.van.roijen@chello.nl
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Reference:

*ME/CFS -Familys Nightmarish Experience*

Help ME Circle, 3 January 2011


I posted the horrible story about the young boy Ryan
Baldwin, a severe ME/CFS patient.

*....Although he was declared medically disabled by
the Social Services Administration; the Buncombe
County Department of Social Services took custody
of Ryan, who spent 10 months in three separate
foster placements....*


See:


````````


Writing from memory I added the
following introduction to the article
above:


The story below reminds me of a UK Prof, who
created a terrible climate for ME patients all over
the world. (he also dictates the strategy of the CDC,
with the result (by formulating endless stretching
criteria), that the prevalence figures in the USA are
now the same as with the flawed Oxford standards.

(Because of brainfog the name of this UK Prof has
slipped me at the moment).


What I remember is, that he is a member
of the supervisory board of a company
named PRISMA.



This same company is being paid many millions of
pounds to supply *rehabilitation* programs (such as
CBT and GET) to the NHS for use on *CFS* patients.

He is also an officer of the insurance company
UNUM. Insurance companies save a huge amount
of money in payments if illnesses can be viewed as
mental and not physical.


Anyhow this Prof was involved in a case where a
severely ill, virtually paralysed young boy with
ME/CFS was subjected to horrific psychiatric
*treatment* including throwing him into a
swimming pool:


i.e swim or drown....

He couldn't swim......!




```````````````````


I received the following reply from reader XXXX:



Dear Jan,


I am sure you would want to be accurate otherwise
anyone publishing your posting will also be
publishing misinformation.


Wessely confirmed, earlier this year, that he was
not involved with the Board of PRISMA beyond
around 2001 and that he has not been an "officer
of UNUM".



Here is a copy of his clarification:



http://bit.ly/goQePD



Clarification from Prof Wessely
on interests in PRISMA Health


OK, someone I know asked SW about his
involvement with PRISMA and he responded, asking
that his entire email be posted without edit, if it is
posted. So, here it is:





From: Wessely, Simon
Subject: RE: PRISMA
Date: 25/04/2010 02:26 PM




My interactions with PRISMA already are a
matter of record.

But to answer your questions



*I understand that in 2001 you were still listed
in PRISMA Health literature as a member of the
company's Supervisory Board and that according
to the financial disclosure in a September 2001
paper in the Journal of the American Medical
Association, you served as an advisor for
treatment programs and research opportunities
for PRISMA*



Indeed so.

This is what happened. I had a brief
association with PRISMA when i was
invited to join their supervisory board
specifically because they were interested
in research. This is like being a non
executive director in an English company,
and is not a salaried role. I attended two
board meetings in germany, for which i
received expenses

After a while it became clear that they
were not really interested in research and
we went our separate ways. I can't
remember exactly when i formally resigned,
but it would be when I stopped reporting it
as a possible COI so around 2002 i guess


Since then I have had no contact with
PRISMA at all. In any shape or form. None.
Zero. Indeed, i don't even know if they are
still trading. At no time have I ever been a
share holder in PRISMA, indeed i have
never been a share holder in anything.

I do get a little fed up with this
obsession with me in general, and my links
with PRISMA in particular. The facts are
that my involvement with PRISMA was
brief, did not make me any money, was
declared appropriately at that time, ended
many years ago, and that since then I have
had absolutely no contact with them
whatsoever.

I have made this clear before, but of
course that is rarely gets circulated in
certain circles, so the rumours, innuendos
and slurs continue.


I hope this puts your mind at rest.


Kind regards

Simon Wessely




````````````````

Reader XXXX continued:



and from this post here:

http://bit.ly/ftykeD


Originally Posted by Holmsey


Simon, you made reference in an earlier mail
about others profiting from the XMRV research,
by the supply of testing etc. inferring in the
process that as an NHS employee your
motivations were above suspicion, but obviously,
as this isn't a personal attack, I'd like to here your
comments on this posting:


Wessely is a member of the supervisory board of a
company named PRISMA. This same company is
being paid many millions of pounds to supply
'rehabilitation' programs (such as CBT and GET) to
the NHS for use on 'CFS' patients (Mar 2004,
[Online]). Wessely is also an officer of UNUM (large
insurance company)."


UNUM is a huge disability insurer, and its policies
typically exclude disability coverage for functional
(psychiatric) illness. They have a vested interest in
seeing that CFS/ME stays solely in the realm of
psychiatry, and have bought SW on board as a
gatekeeper for CFS patients. This is conflict of
interest and bias of the highest order, since a finding
of an organic cause of CFS/ME is directly against his
financial interests. Same goes for his relationship to
PRISMA.



Any truth in any of it?



````````


The reply was:

Originally Posted by Holmsey


[Wessely's reply]



Was a non exec of prisma. (Ie unpaid) for
about 18 months cos they said they
wanted to do research. Resigned when it
was clear they weren't going to.
This was god knows when but perhaps 10
years ago. Never ever worked for Unum.
Done one perhaps 2 talks at unum
sponsored meetings. Not about cfs as far
as I recall




````````


So, he has clarified (in November 09 and April 10 this
year) that he was no longer a Board member of
PRISMA beyond around 2001 and that he was not
and is not an "officer" of UNUM.




XXXX




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Apolgies to Prof. Simon Wessely



Of course I want to be accurate in *Help ME Circle* -
Although this is not always possible, because in most
cases I'm just the *messenger*.


Because of a severe writing-aphasia (caused by
*ME*), it is a hell of a job for me to write such a
long introduction.


And now I had to immerse frantically in my chaotic
archives......




These are my (absolute correct) findings:



1. Wessley has said he has NOT been
involved with PRISMA for some years
(My PRISMA documents naming him as
a Corporate Officer date from 2001).

2. Although he has definitely spoken at
UNUM-sponsored conferences (and they
were definitely about ME/CFS), SW says he
does NOT act for them.

3. Wessely was NOT directly involved with
throwing Ean Proctor into the swimming
pool (although Wessely DID sign the
letter supporting taking the child into
care).






My well-intentioned apologies to Prof. Simon
Wessely for the flaws in my introduction to an
journal article about one of the victims of the
psychiatric *CFS*-School.




~jan van roijen






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