19.06.12
Simplistic solutions
The roll-out of the Alzheimer’s Society FITS programme is welcome action against the over-reliance on unnecessary medication.
This is a challenge for the treatment and care of patients with dementia as well as more generally in the health service; both patients and doctors can often seem more convinced by the power of pills than alternative options.
The unwillingness to employ non-pharmaceutical treatments is also evident in the low percentage of people with mental health difficulties receiving psychological therapies. The treatments exist and have been shown to be effective and inexpensive, yet they remain dramatically under-utilised.
Drugs are seen as the simple solution; quick to prescribe, cheap and effective. But there is much to be said for developing techniques for managing symptoms that rely instead on the professional delivering the care.
This can eliminate side effects, have more long term effects and treat the patient as a human being rather than a problem. Consistently simplifying treatment to the level of a repeat prescription removes the need to understand the condition in depth and can persuade doctors to simplify the patient as well.
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