Psychotropic Medicines

Prescribing is common in BPD despite limited evidence and guidelines favoring psychological therapy. International guidance recommends trying psychosocial and behavioural interventions before using psychotropic medicines for behaviours of concern. The 2023 Australian Royal Commission found substantial evidence of over-prescribing and chemical restraint use in this population. The study identified symptom relief, perceived risks, and access problems as interrelated influences on prescribing. Medication was described as a practical decision made under distress, uncertainty, limited support, and variable access to alternatives. The programme responds to concerns about misuse, overuse, and off-label use of psychotropic medicines for behaviours of concern in people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Psychotropic medicines can cause adverse effects, including serious effects that may contribute to early death. Medication may sometimes function as a pragmatic substitute or holding intervention when psychological therapies are hard to access.