Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 7 April 2004
35 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Health and Children the statistics available to his office on the amount of antidepressants prescribed to persons here by doctors; his views on whether too many antidepressants are being prescribed, as is the case in the UK; his plans to ensure that fewer antidepressants are prescribed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10813/04]
Amharc ar fhreagraPrescriptions are issued by health professionals based on the symptoms of the presenting patient at the time of consultation. The level of medication prescribed, therefore, is a matter of clinical decision for the particular doctor involved. My Department has no role in the determination of appropriate medication protocols for patients with any condition.
Prescriptions for antidepressants may be issued by either general practitioners or consultants in a variety of locations, for example, general practice, community psychiatric facilities or private or public psychiatric hospitals. There is no formal national collection of data on the level, frequency or other details in connection with the prescribing of antidepressants. Accordingly, it is not possible to give the requested statistics to the Deputy.
An expert group on mental health policy was established in August 2003 to prepare a new national policy framework for the mental health services, updating the 1984 policy document, Planning for the Future. The group consists of 18 widely experienced people who are serving in their personal capacity. The membership encompasses a wide range of knowledge and a balance of views on many issues affecting the performance and delivery of care in our mental health services. All areas of mental health policy and service provision will be examined in the course of the group's work.
