Do GPs and psychiatrists recommend alternatives when prescribing anti-depressants?
This study explores whether a partial explanation for high antidepressant prescription rates is the failure of prescribers to recommend alternatives. 1829 New Zealand adults were asked which of six non-pharmacological treatment approaches were recommended when prescribed anti-depressants. The majority (82%) received at least one recommendation and 32% received three or more, most commonly 'Counsellor/Psychologist/Psychotherapist' (74%) and Exercise Schedule (43%). It cannot, therefore, be concluded that failing to consider non-pharmacological treatments is a major cause of high prescribing rates. Being younger and more severely depressed were both positively related to number of recommendations. Psychiatrists made significantly more recommendations than GPs.
['Read|John|J|', 'Gibson|Kerry|K|', 'Cartwright|Claire|C|']
D000293:Adolescent D000328:Adult D000368:Aged D000928:Antidepressive Agents D011307:Drug Prescriptions D005260:Female D058005:General Practitioners D006801:Humans D008297:Male D001523:Mental Disorders D008875:Middle Aged D009520:New Zealand D011570:Psychiatry D055815:Young Adult
Antidepressants Depression Psychotherapy