Unit 12 Assignment – Managing Side Effects Across the Lifespan
Instructions
- Write a generalized paper concerning common side effects and how to manage these for the psychiatric mental health patient.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
- Why is it important to include side effects in informed consent?
- The paper should be 3-4 pages double spaced then an additional 1-2 pages addressing the following mini-cases.
For the following 5 mini-cases, answer the following questions:
- What is the potential side effect of the medication that will be started?(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
- Is this medication appropriate (right med, right dose, right time, right route) for this patient?
- What would be another medication(s) you could possibly start and the side effects of that medication(s)?
Patient 1: 67-year-old female who presents with MDD and GAD. She has been treated with Cymbalta in the past however finds it not working very well and having sadness, insomnia, ruminations, and a sense of impending doom again. She is to be started on Pristiq 50mg.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
Patient 2: 9-year-old male who presents with ADHD and panic disorder. He is to be started on Adderall XR 20mg at noon.
Patient 3: 40-year-old male who presents with Bipolar 1 Disorder and in a manic state after stopping his Abilify for the 3rd time in 8 months. It had been discussed previously to start Abilify Maintena 400mg IM q 4 weeks and will be started today. He has not had PO Abilify for 1 week.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
Patient 4: 93-year-old female who presents with the recent loss (6 months ago) of her husband of 58 years. She notes trouble sleeping, not being hungry, and sad. She has no previous psychiatric history and is to be started on paroxetine 30mg daily and quetiapine 200mg hs for her recent insomnia.
Patient 5: 52-year-old female who presents with MDD. She reports recently going through menopause and having a lot of trouble with irritability and hot flashes. Her current medication is not working like it was before and she will be started on clonazepam 0.5mg bid.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
Rubric
NU675 Unit 12 Assignment – Managing Side Effects Across the Life Span Rubric
NU675 Unit 12 Assignment – Managing Side Effects Across the Life Span Rubric
CriteriaRatingsPts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeContent of Paper
8 pts
Level 5
Demonstrates a well-articulated understanding of the subject matter in a clear, complex, and informative manner. Develops content and theories are well. Links content to the paper requirements and practical experience. Includes relevant material that fulfills all objectives of the paper. Uses scholarly resources that were not provided in the course materials. Completes all instruction requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
6.67 pts
Level 3
Demonstrates an understanding of the subject matter. Explains and applies knowledge of evidence-based practice, ethics, theory, and/or role. Uses a variety of scholarly resources from the course material and some that were not provided in the course materials. Includes relevant material that fulfills all objectives of the paper. Completes all instruction requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
3.33 pts
Level 1
Demonstrates a moderate understanding of the subject matter. Summarizes content with minimal application to evidence-based practice, theory, or role-development. Presents content but is missing depth and or development. Uses only scholarly resources that were provided in the course materials Completes most instruction requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
0 pts
Level 0
Does not meet the Section
8 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeAnalysis and Synthesis of Paper Content and Meaning
8 pts
Level 5
Provides critical analysis in an accurate, clear, concise, and complete presentation of the required content. Synthesizes information from scholarly resources. Provides new information or insight related to the context of the assignment with both supportive and alternative information or viewpoints. Completes all instruction requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
5.33 pts
Level 3
Provides evidence of further synthesis of course content via scholarly resources. Synthesizes information to help fulfill paper requirements. Supports content with at least one viewpoint. Completes all instruction requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
3.33 pts
Level 1
Lacks clarification or new information. Supports content with scholarly reference without adding any new information or insight. Provides content that may be confusing or unclear, and the summary may be incomplete. Completes most instruction requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
0 pts
Level 0
Does not meet the Section
8 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeApplication of Knowledge
8 pts
Level 5
Offers a multidisciplinary approach via scholarly resources. Applies practice that is accurate and plausible. Supports practice with additional scholarly resources. Answers all questions posed within the assignment in a well-developed manner with citations for validation. Completes all instruction requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
5.33 pts
Level 3
Presents a summary of the paper’s content, findings, and knowledge gained. Indicates how the information will be used within their professional practice. Completes all instruction requirements.
3.33 pts
Level 1
Lacks objective Section. Applies superficial bridge between the assignment and the broader course content. Indicates how they will apply this new knowledge to their clinical practice in a vague manner. Completes most instruction requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
0 pts
Level 0
Does not meet the Section
8 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeOrganization
8 pts
Level 5
Provides well-organized content with a clear and complex purpose statement and content argument. Provides concise writing with a logical flow of ideas.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
5.33 pts
Level 3
Provides organized content with an informative purpose statement and supportive content and summary statement. Provides argument content with minimal issues in content flow.
3.33 pts
Level 1
Provides poor organization, and flow of ideas distract from content. Provides a purpose statement. Provides narrative that is difficult to follow and frequently causes reader to reread work.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
0 pts
Level 0
Does not meet the Section
8 pts
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeCollege-level academic writing
8 pts
Level 5
Includes no more than three grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors that do not interfere with the readability. Meets the assignment length requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
5.33 pts
Level 3
Includes no more than four grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors that do not interfere with the readability. Meets the length requirements.
2.67 pts
Level 1
Includes five or more grammatical, spelling, and punctuation errors makes understanding parts of assignment difficult, but does not interfere with readability. Meets the length requirements.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
0 pts
Level 0
Does not meet the Section
8 pts
Total Points: 40
Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example
Common Side Effects of Psychiatric Medications
Psychotropic drugs treat mental illnesses like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, and depression. Those diagnosed with a condition can better manage their mental health and lead productive lives by using a treatment plan that combines psychotherapy and psychotropic medications. More individuals are using psychotropic medications since they are increasingly given often. This is because psychotropics like SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors), for example, are safer, better tolerated by patients, and simpler for clinicians to prescribe because they offer simpler dosing schemes, pose less risk of overdosage, and have more tolerable side effects, as per a report by the US Department of Health and Human Services (Demitri, 2018). However, not everyone should use these drugs, particularly not under a doctor’s care and prescription(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example).
Psychiatric drugs have a lot of common adverse effects, some of which are comparable across drug groups. Antipsychotic medicines can cause a variety of unpleasant side effects, from mild ones like light drowsiness or dry mouth to very unpleasant ones like constipation, akathisia, and sexual dysfunction to severe ones like acute dystonias to disfiguring ones like weight gain and tardive dyskinesia to life-threatening ones like myocarditis and agranulocytosis (Demitri, 2018). Some adverse effects, such as elevated prolactin or serum cholesterol levels, have little short-term clinical relevance but may raise the risk of long-term medical issues. Antipsychotics can generally cause sleepiness, restlessness, tremor, muscle spasms, dry mouth, or blurred eyesight. Tardive dyskinesia (TD), a disease marked by uncontrollable movements most frequently affecting the mouth, lips, and tongue but occasionally the trunk or other body parts like the arms and legs, is one of the long-term side effects (Demitri, 2018). The likelihood of long-term negative effects increases when these medications are taken for an extended length of time, typically many years.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
Atypical antipsychotics frequently cause weight gain, constipation, blurred vision, dry mouth, and dizziness or lightheadedness as side effects. Atypical antipsychotics occasionally lead to difficulty sleeping, excessive fatigue, and weakness (Demitri, 2018). Drowsiness, decreased coordination, memory loss, and dry mouth are side effects of benzodiazepines. Buspirone may cause headaches, nausea, nervousness, and dysphoria. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) frequently induce fatigue, sleeplessness, diarrhea, and nausea. Loss of appetite, difficulty sleeping, and mood fluctuations are typical side effects of stimulants. Tricyclic antidepressants may induce weight gain, sleepiness, dry mouth, constipation, urine retention, blurred vision, and a reduction in blood pressure upon standing (Demitri, 2018). Common side effects of venlafaxine include sexual dysfunction, fast heartbeat, hypertension, dry mouth, perspiration, dizziness, and nausea.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
Strategies to Manage Side Effects
Several strategies can be adopted to address common side effects of psychiatric drugs. Psychiatric medications that are not necessary or helpful should be discontinued. One of the basic management methods for side effects is to reduce the dose (Stroup & Gray, 2018). This strategy is appropriate when the psychiatric medication has been beneficial, and the adverse impact is dose-related and not immediately life-threatening. It is generally advised to use the lowest dose necessary to achieve therapeutic objectives as this lessens dose-related side effects like Parkinsonism, drowsiness, hyperprolactinemia, orthostatic hypotension, and anticholinergic effects (Stroup & Gray, 2018). In actuality, determining the best, lowest effective dose is an empirical, customized procedure that must strike a compromise between the aspirations for maximum efficacy and minimal side effects.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
A different approach is to switch to a psychiatric medication with a distinct profile of side effects. A common tactic that is effective for at least some side effects, such as dyslipidemias or weight loss, is switching to a medication that is unlikely to have the problematic effect. Switching is an appealing solution to these concerns because different psychiatric drugs have different risks for side effects like akathisia, weight gain, and hyperprolactinemia. To prevent symptom aggravation and other rebound symptoms, switching should ideally be done gradually rather than suddenly (Stroup & Gray, 2018). The use of non-pharmacologic interventions is another option open to practitioners. Although attractive, non-pharmacologic methods to lessen side effects are typically not attainable. Exercise and diet plans have a marginally positive impact on weight gain and associated lipid problems. An alternative method of managing side effects is to take a medicine concurrently (Stroup & Gray, 2018). Because the beneficial effects of concurrent drugs are frequently minor, they can also have adverse effects, and there is a chance of drug interactions. Using medications to treat antipsychotic side effects is a widespread but frequently ineffective strategy. For instance, cognitive impairment and constipation are side effects of anticholinergic medicines used to treat Parkinsonism.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
Importance of including Side Effects in Informed Consent
Informed consent, which derives from the patient’s right to decide what transpires in their body, is an ethical and legal requirement of medical professionals in the US. Giving informed consent entails evaluating the patient’s comprehension, making a genuine recommendation, and documenting the procedure. The Joint Commission mandates that all aspects of informed consent be recorded on a form, in progress notes, or somewhere else in the record (Shah et al., 2022). The following components must be included in the informed consent discussion documentation: (1) the procedure’s nature, (2) its risks and merits, (3) plausible alternatives, (4) their risks and benefits, and (5) an evaluation of the patient’s comprehension of items 1 through 4. Including side effects in the informed consent is critical to ensure the patient clearly understands why a particular procedure or medication was selected to help in their decision-making process and to ensure the patient feels in control of their health care.(Managing Psychiatric Medications Side Effects Across the Lifespan Essay Example)
References
Demitri, M. (2018). Common side effects of psychiatric medications. https://psychcentral.com/lib/common-side-effects-of-psychiatric-medications#1
Shah, P., Thornton, I., Turrin, D., & Hipskind, J. E. (2022). Informed Consent. StatPearls [Internet].
Stroup, T. S., & Gray, N. (2018). Management of common adverse effects of antipsychotic medications. World psychiatry : official journal of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA), 17(3), 341–356. https://doi.org/10.1002/wps.20567
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