Failure to Ensure Antipsychotic Medication Was Clinically Indicated
Penalty
Summary
A resident was prescribed Seroquel, an antipsychotic medication, at a dose of 25 mg daily for confusion and agitation. The resident's medical record indicated a diagnosis of mild vascular dementia with anxiety, but there was no significant past psychiatric history documented. Review of behavioral monitoring records showed that the resident did not exhibit any behavioral symptoms over a one-month period. Additionally, psychiatric evaluations noted the absence of significant psychiatric diagnoses and described the dementia as unspecified without behavioral disturbance and of low severity. Despite the ongoing prescription of Seroquel, there was no documented evidence of a specific condition or targeted behavior that warranted the use of this psychoactive medication, as required by the facility's policy. The family had refused a gradual dose reduction, but the clinical record lacked justification for the continued use of the antipsychotic. This failure to ensure an adequate indication for the antipsychotic medication resulted in the resident's drug regimen not being free from unnecessary drugs.