I wanted to share the story, linked below, regarding an amazing symposium put on by the Ventura County Long Term Care Ombudsman and CANHR regarding Toxic Medicine and the inappropriate and unnecessary use of psychotropic medications in nursing homes. The program featured very strong presentations by Tony Chicotel and Christopher Cherney , as well as an administrator from Beatitudes, an Arizona long term care facility known for adopting a "culture of comfort" for patients with advanced dementia.
I found the presentation particularly empowering. Tony impressed the audience with a primer on nursing home regulations relating to informed consent, unnecessary drugs, and battery. He also walked the line by presenting to a packed audience of nursing home providers and Department of Public Health enforcement officials, calling for more stringent enforcement of the clear regulations. Only by enforcing principles of informed consent are we truly honoring each residents' rights.
Christopher related well to the audience, bringing his perspective of nursing home administrator to the group and empathizing with the provider perspective that many residents do have difficult behaviors that must be addressed. But drugs are not the answer. He spoke about the particularly harmful effects of psychotropic medications on the brain. He also issued a challenge and pledged $1,000 of his own money to send Robert Whittaker's book, Anatomy of an Epidemic, to every SNF Medical Director in the state. The use of these medications is enabled by physician orders, and the movement to curb (if not eliminate) these drugs needs to include educating the prescribing physicians.
Beatitudes administrator, Meryl Salit, gave concrete examples of how her facility copes with the most challenging residents, seeing them as whole human beings, and looking beyond their diagnosis or behavior to determine what the behavior is communicating about the resident's needs. Referred to as a "culture of comfort", she explained that by really getting to know residents, and what brings them comfort, they are able to meet needs, and provide redirection without resorting to harmful drugs. I learned that a chocolate chip cookie can go a long way ....
The day was also peppered with stories of loved ones have been adversely affected by these medications. Toxic indeed.
Christopher summed up the day by calling the event the beginning of a "movement" to stop drugging our elders. Every movement has its beginning. I dare say, this movement started in my own back yard. I was proud to be a part of it.
Click here for Ventura County Star's March 24th coverage of the event.
