Ethical prescribing of psychotropic medications for people with neurodevelopmental disorders
Author(s)
Deb, Shoumitro
Limbu, Bharati
Bianco, Annamaria
Bertelli, Marco
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Objectives
People with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) such as intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and autism are subjected to restrictive practices like physical restraint and the overuse of psychotropic medications for challenging behaviour in the absence of a psychiatric disorder. This practice may lead to human rights violations. Rational and evidence-based shared decision-making for person-centred planning will help reduce this practice.
Methods
We have discussed in this paper the issue of the overmedication of people with NDD, explaining how this practice may violate the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
Results
We have discussed how the following UN CRPD Articles may be affected by overmedication, including Article 15 (degrading treatment or punishment), 16 (abuse), 17 (the integrity of the person), and 25 (health). The other Articles that may be indirectly affected by this practice are 5 (equality and non-discrimination), 9 (accessibility), 19 (independent living and community inclusion), 21 (access to information), 24 (education), 26 (rehabilitation), 27 (work and employment), 28 (adequate living standard), and 30 (participation in recreation and leisure).
Conclusions
Overmedication of people with NDD, particularly the off-licence use of psychotropics for challenging behaviour, the side effects of these medications impacting the person’s quality of life are likely to violet several UN Articles on Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Following the right guidelines may help reduce these human rights violations.
People with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) such as intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and autism are subjected to restrictive practices like physical restraint and the overuse of psychotropic medications for challenging behaviour in the absence of a psychiatric disorder. This practice may lead to human rights violations. Rational and evidence-based shared decision-making for person-centred planning will help reduce this practice.
Methods
We have discussed in this paper the issue of the overmedication of people with NDD, explaining how this practice may violate the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
Results
We have discussed how the following UN CRPD Articles may be affected by overmedication, including Article 15 (degrading treatment or punishment), 16 (abuse), 17 (the integrity of the person), and 25 (health). The other Articles that may be indirectly affected by this practice are 5 (equality and non-discrimination), 9 (accessibility), 19 (independent living and community inclusion), 21 (access to information), 24 (education), 26 (rehabilitation), 27 (work and employment), 28 (adequate living standard), and 30 (participation in recreation and leisure).
Conclusions
Overmedication of people with NDD, particularly the off-licence use of psychotropics for challenging behaviour, the side effects of these medications impacting the person’s quality of life are likely to violet several UN Articles on Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Following the right guidelines may help reduce these human rights violations.
Date Issued
2024-03
Date Acceptance
2023-09-26
Citation
Advances in Neurodevelopmental Disorders, 2024, 8 (1), pp.198-207
ISSN
2366-7532
Publisher
Springer
Start Page
198
End Page
207
Journal / Book Title
Advances in Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Volume
8
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2023. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Identifier
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41252-023-00365-y
Publication Status
Published
Date Publish Online
2023-10-12