1. Medicalisation or under-treatment? Psychotropic medication use by elderly people in New Zealand.
- Author
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Norris, Pauline, Horsburgh, Simon, Lovelock, Kirsten, Becket, Gordon, Keown, Shirley, Arroll, Bruce, Cumming, Jackie, Herbison, Peter, and Crampton, Peter
- Subjects
MENTAL illness drug therapy ,PSYCHIATRIC drugs ,AGE distribution ,ANALYSIS of variance ,DRUG prescribing ,ETHNIC groups ,HEALTH services accessibility ,HEALTH status indicators ,PHARMACY databases ,LONGITUDINAL method ,MAORI (New Zealand people) ,MEDICALLY underserved areas ,NURSING home patients ,RESEARCH funding ,SEX distribution ,PHYSICIAN practice patterns ,SOCIOECONOMIC factors ,DESCRIPTIVE statistics ,OLD age - Abstract
The increased use of information technology in health care allows researchers to generate data on rates of medication use among population groups, raising questions as to whether these rates are too high or too low. This paper presents findings from a study of records of all prescription medication dispensed in one New Zealand region (Te Tāirawhiti) over a one year period. The study examined patterns of psychotropic medication use amongst older people, by age, gender, ethnicity and socio-economic position. It concludes that the chances of being defined as needing psychotropic medication, that is, of being 'medicalised', are not evenly spread through the elderly population. Gender, age and ethnicity impacted significantly on whether prescriptions were received. Our results suggest the need for a nuanced understanding of the medicalisation of unhappiness and deviant behaviour amongst the elderly which takes into account barriers to treatment for some social groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2011
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