Until recently, clinicians have had little reason for enthusiasm in the treatment of a significant proportion of the population with schizophrenia. Approximately 15% of these patients are unresponsive to traditional antipsychotic therapy. Defining this severely ill, treatment-refractory group of patients can be a difficult task. Despite the complexity of the undertaking, it is important that such patients be identified so that their treatment can be optimized. There is increasing evidence that new, atypical antipsychotic agents can not only ameliorate both positive and negative symp- toms of schizophrenia, but can also improve patients' vocational social, and cognitive functioning as well as their overall quality of life. Free of the limitations imposed by conventional antipsychotics, patients are now able to effectively partake in many available treatments. Psychiatric rehabilitation now becomes an achievable reality. The advent of atypical antipsychotics has clearly shown that there is a much greater potentialfor recovery from schizophrenia than we had previously thought possible.