Psychotropic Medication Prescription for Autism: Data Sources for Decision Making

Psychotropic Medication Monitoring in a Human Services Organization for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Description and Evaluation of Interdisciplinary Team Review

“…The limitations of pharmacotherapy research notwithstanding, physicians in many treatment settings prescribe psychotropic medications based on clinical judgement without relying on behavior data to inform effectiveness (Aarons, 2005 ; Hoagwood et al, 2001 ; Lunsky et al, 2018 ). In particular, “How prescribers come to the decision to prescribe, and what information they use to monitor and judge effectiveness, or to make medication changes, will impact the course of treatment the patient receives” (Rieken et al, 2019 , p. 2). Likewise, Weeden et al ( 2010 ) advised that more behavior-specific measurement is needed to reliably determine the effects psychotropic medications have on adaptive skills, challenging behavior, and undesirable side effects.…”

“…In a survey study, Rieken et al ( 2019 ) reported that physician prescribers of psychotropic medications to children with ASD relied on their pharmacologic history, whether psychosocial-behavioral treatment was being implemented, and less often, anecdotal and quantified data sources from other providers. These results suggest that some prescription practices may be guided by reasonable criteria but more objective methods should be considered.…”