The document discusses alternatives to psychotropic medication for dementia care in long term care facilities. It notes that federal and state laws prohibit the use of antipsychotic drugs unless necessary to treat symptoms, and that non-pharmacological options must be tried first. The document also provides facts showing that psychotropic drugs carry health risks like an increased chance of death or blood clots, while approaches like managing pain or using the five senses can also help control symptoms.

1. Dementia Care Without Drugs: A Better
Approach for Long Term Care Facilities
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#betterdementiacare11

2. Did you know…
Psychotropic medications may not be given without
the informed consent of the patient or the patient’s
legally responsible party.

3. Did you know…
People taking atypical antipsychotic drugs are
approximately 73% more likely to develop blood
clots than people who do not.

4. Did you know…
A chemical restraint is any drug used to control
behaviour rather than treat a persons’ medical
condition.

5. Did you know…
Federal and state laws prohibit the use of
antipsychotic drugs in nursing homes unless it is
necessary and required to treat a residents’
symptoms. Further, non-pharmacological options
must be used as a first resort.

6. Did you know…
The five senses are not severely impacted by dementia
and can be used to provide comfort.

7. Did you know…
Using antipsychotic drugs to treat dementia is
considered “off-label” and has a “Black Box warning
indicating that the risk of death for the user is
doubled.

8. Did you know…
Regularized pain medication has been shown to be
as effective in controlling dementia symptoms as
psychotropic medication.

9. Did you know…
Forty skilled nursing facilities, in California, do not
have any residents who receive antipsychotics.

10. Did you know…
Thirty three skilled nursing facilities, in California,
administer antipsychotics to every resident.

11. Did you know…
In a 2005 study, nearly one-quarter of all
antipsychotic prescriptions in nursing homes did not
include a clinical indication for use.