No matter how many medications you’re on or what you take them for, keeping track of everything is complicated. You have to remember what dose of which medication you take, not to mention when and how often. And you have to track how well each medication is working, all the side effects, and worry about drug interactions. It’s a lot to manage, especially when you have a mental health condition.
Psychiatric medication management can help you with all of this and more, lifting the burden, so you can focus on improving your mental health. Not everyone needs it, but for those who do, the benefits are immeasurable. Here’s what to know about psychiatric medication management.
Psychiatric Medication Management Basics
Not everyone needs psychiatric medications for their mental health disorder. But for those who benefit from them, medication management plays a key role in their mental health treatment and overall well-being.
Psychiatric medication management has three main goals:
- Monitor the effectiveness of your psychiatric medications
- Manage the side effects and adjust your medications when necessary
- Prevent interactions with other medications
Because psychiatric medications aren’t a one-size-fits-all solution, neither is your treatment plan. They’re only one part of a holistic approach to your mental health treatment, so collaboration with your mental health provider plays a crucial role in the success of your psychiatric medication management.
Who Can Provide Psychiatric Medication Management?
Medication management is more than monitoring symptoms. The professional overseeing your treatment plan makes clinical decisions about prescribing, adjusting, changing, and discontinuing your mental health medications.
Therefore, only medical professionals with full prescriptive authority can provide psychiatric medication management services, including:
- Psychiatrists
- Psychiatric nurse practitioners (PNP)
- Physician assistants (PAs)
- Primary care physicians (PCP)
In states where PNPs and PAs have full prescriptive authority, they can provide psychiatric medication management independent of a doctor’s oversight. In states where they do not have full prescriptive authority, they will work under a doctor’s authority who must sign off on the medication management treatment plan.
It’s also important to note that:
- Licensed clinical social workers (LCSW)
- Licensed counselors (LPC or LCPC)
- Psychologists
do not have full prescriptive authority and cannot provide medication management services to any patient.
How Does Psychiatric Medication Management Work?
Psychiatric medication is an ongoing process. You’ll meet with a mental health professional regularly to evaluate how your medications are working and make adjustments when called for. Here’s what to expect throughout the process.
Evaluation
Before you start medication management services, you’ll meet with a mental health care provider for an evaluation and assessment of your current mental health conditions, psychiatric medications, and medical history. The process helps your provider understand your mental health history and physical health, which could impact your treatment.
Recommendations and Prescriptions
Your provider recommends medications that help you achieve your mental health goals. You may stay with your current mental health medications or try new ones.
This is a collaborative process. Your treatment provider will explain the pros and cons of every recommendation, answer your questions, and give you space to discuss your preferences and concerns.
Ongoing Monitoring and Follow-Up
Regularly monitoring and following up are essential to your success. You’ll meet with your provider to discuss how your mental health condition is (stable, better, worse), address any side effects, and adjust your mental health medications as necessary.
Who Should Consider Psychiatric Medication Management?
While anyone who’s taking multiple mental health medications or a mental health medication in combination with other types of medications (like for high cholesterol or diabetes), psychiatric medication management is usually best when:
- Your symptoms interfere with your daily functioning, quality of life, or overall well-being. Medication management can help you identify which medications may be causing debilitating side effects and get them under control.
- You haven’t had success with mental health treatment alone. If you’ve tried non-medical methods of treating mental health conditions (like talk therapy) and they haven’t worked for you, mental health medications may help, and you may want help managing them.
- You need extra support. If you’re on multiple medications and are worried about interactions or are overwhelmed by the thought of managing a mental health disorder and medications on your own, medication management can lift the burden, giving you time to focus on improving your mental health symptoms.
Certain diagnoses are also better suited for psychiatric medication management services. These conditions often have no cure, requiring lifelong mental health care and management:
How Long Does Psychiatric Medication Management Last?
Most people use psychiatric medication management as long as they’re on psychiatric medications. Ongoing monitoring ensures the medications remain effective and helps you handle side effects if and when they happen. However, depending on your mental health issues and your medications, you may eventually stop medication management.
In essence, there are three types of psychiatric medication management, and each achieves a different goal.
Short-Term
Short-term psychiatric medication management is often used when someone first starts a psychiatric medication and is likely to stop using that medication within six to 12 months. Medication management ensures the patient finds a dose that stabilizes their mental health condition. Once stable, the goal is to taper off the medication when it’s clinically appropriate.
For example, someone with situational anxiety may suddenly develop a new and intense fear of public speaking. Psychiatric medication can bring the anxiety under control while the patient addresses the underlying cause of the anxiety, with the goal of no longer needing medication to speak in public.
Medium-Term
Someone with recurrent mental health issues, like PTSD or generalized anxiety disorder, may need to stay on their mental health medications for a longer time, usually several years. While the goal is to live life without psychiatric medication, the underlying condition may take longer than six to 12 months to treat.
Long-Term
Long-term psychiatric medication management is for those with chronic mental health conditions, like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, persistent depression, persistent anxiety, ADHD, or chronic PTSD. Psychiatric medications help patients control their condition, so medication management focuses on maintenance, with ongoing evaluation and follow-up to ensure the dose is still effective and the side effects are manageable.
Can I Do Telehealth Psychiatric Medication Management?
Telehealth medication management is possible for anyone using psychiatric medications. Your medication management appointments work the same way as an in-person session, only you’ll meet with your provider from the privacy and comfort of your home, office, or anywhere that’s convenient for you.
During the appointment, you’ll discuss how your treatment is working, if you’re experiencing side effects, and talk through your concerns. If you and your provider decide it’s warranted, they will adjust or change your psychiatric medications to ensure you get the results you’re looking for.
Please note that in Washington State, some in-person appointments are required for people on certain controlled substances. Your provider will discuss what this means for your treatment plan.
Lifting a Burden
Psychiatric medication management is an ongoing and collaborative approach to managing your mental health condition and the medications you take for it. Your mental health provider ensures you understand the pros and cons of every medication you’re on and helps you manage the effectiveness and side effects that happen.
Whether you’re just starting psychiatric medications, adding new ones, or want help understanding the medications you take, Owens Mental Health can help. Our psychiatric medication management services help you stay on top of your medications and mental health, ensuring you achieve your goals — whatever they are.
Contact us today for a free consultation and learn more about how we can help.
