Schizophrenia drugs must be better managed
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Mental health patients may receive little information about drugs
they are given |
Management of medicines for people with schizophrenia needs to improve, the Healthcare
Commission has insisted.
The commission surveyed all 174 local implementation teams (LITs) that
plan community mental health services in England. It found that 84 per
cent of LITs were rated fair or weak on the management of medicines for
patients with schizophrenia. LITs also performed poorly in terms of providing
patients with information about their medicines: only 5 per cent obtained
the top score for telling patients about possible side effects.
A Healthcare Commission survey of users of community mental health services
also found deficiencies in the information patients were given. Only
half (47 per cent) of those questioned said they had been given a copy
of their care plan and only 42 per cent believed that they had been involved
in decisions about their medicines.
Sue Champion, associate director of nursing at North Essex Mental Health
Partnership NHS Trust (one of the trusts given an “excellent” score
in the review), commented: “We always try to involve patients as
much as possible in their medication management. At each appointment
the community psychiatric nurse or care worker will always talk to patient
about the medicines they are prescribed using the patient information
leaflet.
The team’s six-monthly reviews of its care programme involve a
range of professions, she added. “We try to involve our pharmacy
colleagues as much as possible at all stages and particularly in discharge
planning, because of their expertise in the use of medicines and advice
on tailored supply such as the use of medi-doses and small quantities.
… That is something we would like to do more of in the future.” |
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Pharmaceutical Journal
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