The face of mental health care is changing, new research suggests, with more Americans treated for mental disorders using medication alone.
Using data from government surveys conducted in 1998 and 2007, researchers report in the American Journal of Psychiatry this month that the number of people who said they received medication solely as a treatment for a mental health issue rose from 44 percent to 57 percent during that time.
In the same period, the number of people who were treated with a combination of medication and therapy dropped from 40 percent to 32 percent.
The implications of this shift toward using drugs alone are unclear, researchers say, but they warn that a combination of medication and therapy is traditionally seen as the most effective course of treatment for many mental health issues. At the same time, however, they acknowledge that the availability of medication may mean that some people are getting help who may not have in years past, reports Reuters. To read more click here.
This is increasingly sad. And I have heard stories of people with certain DX’s being told that their Medication is covered, but if they want therapy they will have to pay out of pocket! (This was with Bipolar and Schizophrenic Dx’d people in TX…) So yeah, it’s worrisome- especially since with such an emphasis on Meds, people who could have put off or avoided med usage if they had entered appropriate theraputic treatment early on might be stuck on medications for the rest of their lives. Or even suffer harmful side effects.