HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS British Journal of Psychiatry Advances in Psychiatric Treatment All RCPsych Journals		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Submit an eLetter Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Barber, J. M. Articles by Wright, M. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Barber, J. M. Articles by Wright, M.

Monitoring patients on high-dose antipsychotics

Department of Psychiatry, Southern General Hospital, Glasgow

Jennifer Connaughton, Consultant Psychiatrist^* and Morag Wright, Pharmacist

The State Hospital, Carstairs, Lanark, Scotland ML11 8RP

^* Correspondence

Aims and method Following the publication of the 1994 Consensus Statement on the use of high-dose antipsychotic medication, we identified our high-dose patients and undertook an audit of the recommended physical investigations. The patients were identified by scrutiny of prescription records. Data were collected retrospectively at six-monthly intervals for four audit cycles. Results were fed back to clinicians at the hospital journal club.

Results The percentage of patients identified in the high-dose category fell from 35 to 23% over 18 months. Electrocardiograph monitoring of the group increased from 5 to 63%. Other tests showed a similar improvement. A very small number of abnormal results was shown. There were no untoward cardiac events.

Clinical implications Introduction of the standards of physical monitoring advised in the Consensus Statement has implications of cost to the NHS to be balanced against risk avoidance for patients. The number of abnormalities detected in our population was low. Changing prescribing behaviour in response to reported abnormal findings proved unexpectedly slow and a new systemwas required.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				L. D. G. Thomson Management of schizophrenia in conditions of high security Advan. Psychiatr. Treat., July 1, 2000; 6(4): 252 - 260. [Full Text]