Week 1 Discussion 2: Prescriptive Practice in Psychiatric Nursing

Student Name: Luis S. Cabrera

Course Name: Adv. Psychopharmacology

Course Number: NU-643-03-21PCFA

Instructor’s Name: Nicole Walters

Institution: Regis College

Date of Submission: 09/02/2021

Week 1 Discussion 2: Prescriptive Practice in Psychiatric Nursing

The Ted Talk video by Insel Thomas highlights and discusses mental diseases and the challenges associated with the detection of these diseases (Insel, 2013). Additionally, he discusses the need to improve on the early detection of these diseases to decrease their mortality rates. According to Insel (2013), individuals with mental illnesses are usually treated after developing behavioral changes and symptoms. However, the brain changes associated with these diseases occur before the development of behavioral symptoms or changes (Insel, 2013). Therefore, early detection of these diseases could help in providing the appropriate interventions to patients during the initial stages of the disease, thereby decreasing the mortality rate. On the other hand, the article (Minds Over Meds) discusses the role of psychopharmacologists in the treatment of mental diseases and the need to integrate psychopharmacology and psychotherapy in practice (Carlat, 2010).

Role of psychiatric medications in the promotion of patient wellbeing

Psychiatric medications play a crucial role in promoting the patient’s mental health and wellbeing. The use of psychiatric medications in patients with mental diseases helps in improving and controlling their symptoms, which assists in promoting their wellbeing (Sultan et al., 2018). Additionally, the use of these medications assists in preventing relapses and the development of complications associated with psychiatric disorders, which helps in improving the wellbeing of patients (Sultan et al., 2018). For example, there are various effective psychiatric medications that are used in improving and controlling the symptoms associated with mental conditions like anxiety, bipolar disorder, and depression, which help in enhancing the wellbeing of patients with these disorders.

Advantages and disadvantages of being a psychopharmacologist versus also integrating psychotherapy in your practice

A psychopharmacologist is essentially a mental health professional who focuses mainly on the treatment of the patient with mental problems using psychiatric or psychotropic medications (Burgess-Dawson & Hemingway, 2017). Some of the advantages of becoming a psychopharmacologist include; the ability to conduct a thorough assessment of patients with mental problems, diagnose mental disorders, and offer the appropriate medication treatments to patients with mental disorders (Burgess-Dawson & Hemingway, 2017). For instance, being a psychopharmacologist enables the provider to assess and diagnose patients with mental problems and offer them the appropriate medication treatment. Becoming a psychopharmacologist also helps in assessing the medication effects on the behavior of patients, which helps in modifying or adjusting their treatment plan by eliminating, decreasing, or increasing the medications (Burgess-Dawson & Hemingway, 2017). However, there are various disadvantages of becoming a psychopharmacologist that includes; overreliance on medications in the treatment of mental problems and failure to address their causes. For instance, psychopharmacologists mainly focus on the treatment of mental diseases, and in most cases, they fail to address the causes of these diseases, which may lead to their recurrence. The use of medications usually helps in relieving the symptoms associated with mental diseases but does not eliminate their causes such as habitual behavior or thought patterns (Burgess-Dawson & Hemingway, 2017).

The integration of psychopharmacology and psychotherapy in practice is one of the most effective approaches that help in offering the appropriate medications and therapies to patients suffering from mental diseases, which helps in enhancing their outcomes (Baruch & Annunziato, 2017). The use of medications helps in improving and controlling the symptoms associated with mental diseases while psychotherapy helps in eliminating the causes of these diseases such as the thought patterns or habitual behavior (Burgess-Dawson & Hemingway, 2017). Integrating psychotherapy with psychopharmacology helps in identifying and addressing all the needs of patients, which results in optimal patient outcomes. Moreover, the incorporation of psychotherapy in practice helps in offering the needed support and assistance to patients with mental problems. On the other hand, there are no medications that are approved for the treatment of some mental disorders like borderline personality disorders, which necessitates the incorporation of psychotherapy in practice.

The integration of psychotherapy and prescribing of medications by the same healthcare provider is supported by a sizeable amount of literature. According to Baruch & Annunziato (2017), the integration of psychotherapy and prescribing of medications by the same healthcare provider helps in offering the appropriate medication and therapy treatments to patients with mental illnesses, which helps in enhancing their outcomes. Ray et al. (2020) assert that the combination of psychotherapy with psychopharmacology is a common form of treatment in contemporary psychiatric practice and is more effective than the use of each treatment alone.

References

Baruch, R. L., & Annunziato, R. A. (2017). Outcomes of combined treatment: Evaluating split versus integrated treatment for depression. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 48(5), 361.

Burgess-Dawson, R., & Hemingway, S. (2017). Basics of psychopharmacology. Fundamentals of Mental Health Nursing: An Essential Guide for Nursing and Healthcare Students.

Carlat, D. (2010). Mind Over Meds. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/25/magazine/25Memoir-t.html

Insel, T. (2013). Toward a new understanding of mental illness [Video]. https://www.ted.com/talks/thomas_insel_toward_a_new_understanding_of_mental_illness

Ray, L. A., Meredith, L. R., Kiluk, B. D., Walthers, J., Carroll, K. M., & Magill, M. (2020). Combined pharmacotherapy and cognitive behavioral therapy for adults with alcohol or substance use disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA network open, 3(6), e208279-e208279.

Sultan, R. S., Correll, C. U., Schoenbaum, M., King, M., Walkup, J. T., & Olfson, M. (2018). National patterns of commonly prescribed psychotropic medications to young people. Journal of child and adolescent psychopharmacology, 28(3), 158-165.