Two news reports this week by Ina Jaffe of NPR News warn of the overuse and dangers of antipsychotic drugs among nursing home patients.
Federal law forbids “chemical restraint” of patients. NPR’s reports show the negative effects such drugs can have on a patient who doesn’t require them. A federal initiative has reduced the use of such drugs in the past two years, according to NPR, but the national average of long-stay patients in nursing homes receiving antipsychotic medications still stands at 19%.
Caregivers and family members should be aware of this issue and monitor their loved ones’ care to make sure that antipsychotic medications are not prescribed unnecessarily.
You can link to the articles here:
“Old and Overmedicated: the Real Drug Problem in Nursing Homes”
“Nursing Homes Rarely Penalized for Oversedating Patients”
