The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) is proud to announce its new practice parameter on the use of psychotropic medications in children and adolescents.

"The reason for the parameter was to ground prescribers of psychotropic medication in the best practice principles," states principle author John Walkup, M.D. "This is not a standard of care document and is not meant to reduce prescribing. Rather, it is a call for action to create a systematic and comprehensive approach to using medications in children safely and effectively."

The parameter specifically outlines best practices for: psychiatric and medical assessment, development of the treatment and monitoring plan, educating both the patient and family about the disorder and treatment, implementation of the treatment plan and management of medication modification plans.

The full practice parameter is featured in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, September 2009 - Volume 48 - Issue 9, pages 961 - 973.

Source
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry