Citation

Zhao J, Aoki Y, Zisman-Ilani Y. Lancet Psychiatry 2024; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2024, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/S2215-0366(24)00113-5

PMID

38697178

Abstract

Psychiatric nurse prescribers (PNPs) are registered nurses who have earned extended training and have the authority to prescribe psychiatric medicines to individuals with various mental health conditions, including severe mental illness. A steady increase in mental health complaints in the general population and a decrease in the availability and accessibility of psychiatrists have contributed to the expansion of PNPs in various countries, including the UK, Sweden, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the USA. Shared decision making is a health communication approach focusing on the interpersonal interactions between patients and providers during appointments. The approach has great potential to help improve patient-provider relationships and communication, satisfaction about treatment decisions, health outcomes, and the overall quality of psychiatric care. However, shared decision making is not widely implemented in psychiatry owing to factors such as psychiatrists' concerns regarding lack of insight among patients with psychiatric conditions, stigma among patients and psychiatrists, and legal liability issues. We believe that PNP-led practices in shared decision making have the potential to mitigate these factors and, therefore, should be more thoroughly studied and implemented.

Language: en