Researchers Report No Evidence for Forcing Medication
Posted on: Thursday, 4 December 2008, 14:30 CST
Forcing psychiatric patients to take their medication is not an effective practice, according to new research in the UK.Reporting in the Journal of Advanced Nursing, the team found a lack of research into the effectiveness of coerced medicine, adding that more should be conducted to determine the best practices.
Researchers from the Institute of Psychiatry and City University in London found 14 studies from seven countries on forcing psychiatric inpatients to take medication.
Most of the patients looked at had been admitted involuntarily, and they were slightly more likely to be female and in their 30s, the studies of patients and staff from the UK, USA, Sweden, Finland, Germany, Canada and Denmark, showed.
Coerced medicine was slightly more common in the UK because mechanical restraint is used more often in other countries, researchers said .
The team noted a “complete absence” of studies into alternative methods to coercion.
"We also need more research into early intervention and whether that can prevent coerced medication," said Manuela Jarrett of the Institute of Psychiatry, who led the research.
"When you stop and think about it, it’s quite a drastic step."
The lack of evidence suggests the procedure is taken for granted in psychiatric hospitals, she said.
"We feel that this is unacceptable and more needs to be done to establish sound clinical evidence and viable alternatives to this contentious approach."
Alison Cobb, senior policy and campaign's officer at the mental health charity, Mind, said forcing patients to take medication against their will was "extremely distressing" for them.
"Their freedom is taken away and people are often left feeling powerless, frightened and helpless."
"We urgently need to see more studies on this issue, particularly exploring the use of alternative treatments and how to include service users fully in making decisions about treatments," Cobb added.
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Journal of Advanced Nursing
Source: redOrbit staff
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