Search Results for: antipsychotics

Advocacy, Antipsychotic drugs, Toward better care

10 seldom-mentioned “side effects” of using antipsychotics in long-term dementia care, which are also 10 more good reasons we should #BanBPSD

amazingsusan

There are a tonne of reasons not to give antipsychotics to people who live with dementia. I’ve blogged about them here, here and here (among many other places). There are also a tonne of reasons why people are given antipsychotic medications in long-term care, most of which have something to do with their normal responses… Continue reading 10 seldom-mentioned “side effects” of using antipsychotics in long-term dementia care, which are also 10 more good reasons we should #BanBPSD

Advocacy, Antipsychotic drugs, Toward better care

teepa talks antipsychotics: 6 quotable quotes

amazingsusan

When I read reporter Gillian Slade’s Medicine Hat News article on Teepa Snow’s perspective on antipsychotics, the quotes jumped out at me. It was the first time I’d “heard” Teepa speak out so clearly about how antipsychotic medications often make things worse rather than better for people who live with dementia. I thought it would… Continue reading teepa talks antipsychotics: 6 quotable quotes

Antipsychotic drugs, Resources, Toward better care

List of 15,645 US nursing homes showing percentage of residents on antipsychotics

amazingsusan

The United States’ Medicare.gov website includes a comprehensive section called Nursing Home Compare, which contains quality of care and staffing information for all 15,600+ Medicare- and Medicaid-participating nursing homes in the country. Among a wealth of other information, Nursing Home Compare offers data on fifteen quality measures from the “percentage of long-stay residents with a… Continue reading List of 15,645 US nursing homes showing percentage of residents on antipsychotics

Advocacy, Antipsychotic drugs, Toward better care

what happens when care homes stop giving antipsychotics to elderly people with dementia?

amazingsusan

In June 2015, the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement released the results of a pan-Canadian collaborative project aimed at reducing the use of antipsychotic medication in long-term care facilities for the elderly. The project achieved astonishing results, which I documented here. Shortly after the results were released, I interviewed Kaye Phillips, Senior Director at the CFHI, and leader of the… Continue reading what happens when care homes stop giving antipsychotics to elderly people with dementia?

Advocacy, Antipsychotic drugs, Toward better care

10 barriers to reducing antipsychotics for dementia

amazingsusan

As a result of my experiences as a care partner to someone living with dementia, I have become a vocal advocate for a behavioural/experiential approach to dementia care, which is embraced by a growing number of dementia care pioneers worldwide. Like these pioneers, some of whom I’ve listed with links at the end of this post,… Continue reading 10 barriers to reducing antipsychotics for dementia

Advocacy, Antipsychotic drugs

the worldwide case against giving antipsychotics to elderly people living with dementia

amazingsusan

Members of the worldwide Alzheimer’s and dementia care community overwhelmingly recommend against using antipsychotic drugs as the first choice in addressing behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) and aggression in dementia patients. In fact, experts everywhere believe antipsychotic medication should only be used as a last resort after every non-pharmacological avenue of treatment has been exhausted.   The American… Continue reading the worldwide case against giving antipsychotics to elderly people living with dementia

Advocacy, Antipsychotic drugs, Challenges & Solutions, Toward better care

7 things you should know about how and why antipsychotics are inappropriately prescribed to people living with dementia in care facilities

amazingsusan

The more research I do into the inappropriate use of antipsychotics to address responsive behaviours in people living with dementia, the angrier I get. I was deeply disturbed when I read this 2008 report produced by an all-party parliamentary group on dementia in the UK: “Always a last resort: inquiry into the prescription of antipsychotic drugs to… Continue reading 7 things you should know about how and why antipsychotics are inappropriately prescribed to people living with dementia in care facilities

Advocacy, Antipsychotic drugs, Toward better care

the truth and lies about antipsychotics and greed: it’s not a pretty picture

amazingsusan

Antipsychotic medications such as Risperdal (risperidone) and Seroquel (quetiapine) are prescribed to elderly people with dementia around the world to manage responsive behaviours which could be and should be addressed with non-pharmacological approaches. These antipsychotic medications severely impact the well being of elderly people with dementia; they also have significant health risks. My mother was first prescribed Risperdal (risperidone)… Continue reading the truth and lies about antipsychotics and greed: it’s not a pretty picture

Advocacy, Antipsychotic drugs, Life & Living

against my wishes and against her will

amazingsusan

  It’s one thing to see someone when they are sedated. It’s quite another to see the sedation taking effect, and the person who doesn’t wish to be sedated trying to fight it off. Against my wishes and against her will, my mom was sedated with quetiapine at breakfast every day for almost four years.… Continue reading against my wishes and against her will

Care Partnering, Challenges & Solutions, Resources, Toward better care

20 questions that help explain why people with dementia get agitated and physically aggressive

amazingsusan

Note: this post has been shared thousands of times since I first published it. Also, Dr. John Morley, director of the division of geriatric medicine at Saint Louis University, one of the United States foremost authorities on geriatrics, and former editor of the Journal of America Medical Directors Association called the piece a “wonderful insight,… Continue reading 20 questions that help explain why people with dementia get agitated and physically aggressive