New York Antipsychotic Drug Misuse Lawyer
Antipsychotic drug misuse is a concerning problem throughout the U.S. Potentially hundreds of thousands of nursing home residents are unnecessarily prescribed antipsychotic drugs, used to treat schizophrenia and other forms of psychosis. The health detriments of administering these drugs when they are not necessary to treat a patient are profound. If your loved one has been treated with an antipsychotic that they did not need, we encourage you to discuss it with one of our New York nursing home negligence attorneys at Cohan Law Firm. The unnecessary use of any drug, particularly a mind altering drug, is dangerous, not to mention a detriment to your loved one’s emotional and psychological health.
The Misuse of Antipsychotic Drugs are Akin to “Chemical Straitjackets”
Nursing home patients with dementia are routinely prescribed antipsychotic drugs simply to calm them down and make them easier to deal with, which goes against every rule in psychiatric health. The misuse of these powerful drugs doubles the chances of a dementia patient’s chance of falling, developing heart problems, or contracting infections. While some nursing homes use physical restraints to handle their short staffing issues (nursing homes are short staffed, just like hospitals, to save money and increase profits), others use antipsychotics as chemical straitjackets to sedate and subdue patients. This practice is ethically wrong and against the law.
Common Types and Names of Antipsychotic Drugs
If you have noticed a change in your loved one’s emotional health, cognitive ability, or overall health, it is probably a good idea to find out what medications they have been given, in addition to looking for other signs of mistreatment, neglect, or abuse. Common antipsychotic drugs that are given to nursing home residents for the purpose of unnecessarily sedating them include:
- Risperidone (Risperdal)
- Quetiapine (Seroquel)
- Olanzapine (Zyprexa)
- Ziprasidone (Zeldox)
- Paliperidone (Invega)
- Aripiprazole (Abilify)
- Clozapine (Clozaril)
- Chlorpromazine (Largactil)
- Flupenthixol (Fluanxol)
- Fluphenazine (Modecate)
- Haloperidol (Haldol)
- Loxapine (Loxapac)
- Perphenazine (Trilafon)
- Pimozide (Orap)
- Trifluoperazine (Stelazine)
- Thiothixene (Navane)
- Zuclopenthixol (Clopixol)
There are other types of antipsychotic medications, as well as other sedatives, that should not be used in nursing homes unless the patient has a diagnosed mental illness. Furthermore, mental illnesses should only be diagnosed by psychiatrists, not general practitioners or other non-specialists that work in nursing homes.
Call a New York Nursing Home Negligence Attorney if You Suspect Antipsychotic Drug Misuse
The use of prescription drugs should not be in the interest of nursing home staff; it should be in the best interest of the patients receiving the drugs. Antipsychotic drugs are misused and abused by nursing homes every day, and your loved one should not have to be subjected to chemical sedation/restraint. To put this chemical abuse to an end and to seek compensation for your loved one, do not hesitate to reach out to the New York nursing home negligence attorneys at Cohan Law Firm. Call us today 855.855.0321 to schedule a free consultation. Along with you, we can hold the nursing home accountable for all of your loved one’s economic and non-economic damages.
