CBC Investigates: Nearly a quarter of Winnipeg care home residents given antipsychotic drugs with no diagnosis
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Winnipeg nursing home residents are being prescribed powerful antipsychotic drugs at an increasing rate to treat dementia and control behaviour, rather than what the drugs are meant for — to manage symptoms of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.
More than 23 per cent of personal care home residents were prescribed antipsychotic medication without a diagnosis of psychosis in the first three months of 2022, according to data provided by the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority.
That average is the highest percentage reported by the WRHA in seven years.
Trish Rawsthorne, a Manitoba seniors' advocate and former nurse, saw first-hand what happens to someone put on an antipsychotic after her sister was given the drug risperidone over a decade ago.
"When she was on the medication, she was very frightened. She didn't really know what was going on. She lost the ability to speak. She was walking 12 hours a day. She couldn't eat properly," Rawsthorne said.
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