The Complexity of Psychotropic Medication Prescription and Treating Trauma Among Youth in Foster Care: Perspectives from the Lived Experience.

Youth in the US foster care system are disproportionately prescribed antipsychotic and psychotropic medication compared to youth not involved with foster care. Research on the relationship between experiences of trauma, mental health symptoms, evidence-based treatment, and safe psychotropic prescribing practices for youth in foster care is limited. We explored stakeholders' perspectives of the relationship between psychotropic medications and trauma informed care (TIC) for youth in foster care. We conducted semi-structured individual and group interviews with foster caregivers, caseworkers, prescribing clinicians, and alumni of the foster care system. Data were recorded and transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using a directed content analysis approach. Five themes emerged across and within stakeholder groups: (1) acknowledging trauma; (2) role of psychotropic medication; (3) psychosocial resources; (4) additional supports; and, (5) training and education. Stakeholders identified TIC as an important component of mental health services for youth in foster care. There was not consensus around the role of psychotropic medication in treating trauma; however, most stakeholders felt that it was overused. Respondents suggested including additional supportive team members to help guide youth through the mental health treatment system, and emphasized the importance of support from individuals with common lived experiences. Results demonstrate the need for a system that emphasizes trauma-sensitive clinical interactions and psychosocial supports. Improving training and education for stakeholders, and providing additional sources of support for youth in foster care, could help better identify and treat the effects of trauma and the safe pharmacotherapy for youth in foster care.

Antipsychotic treatment for youth in foster care: Perspectives on improving youths' experiences in providing informed consent.

The disproportionate prescribing of high-risk antipsychotic medication for youth in foster care is a significant social problem across the U.S. This qualitative study examined stakeholder perceptions of prescribing, being prescribed, or overseeing prescriptions for youth in foster care. Interviews and focus groups were conducted with clinicians, child welfare caseworkers, foster caregivers, and foster care alumni. The overall aim was to systematically explore their understanding of and experiences with the Informed Consent to treatment and shared decision-making processes related to prescribing and monitoring of antipsychotic medications for youth in foster care. Participants were recruited from around the country; data collection using structured interview or focus group guides occurred via telephone and web-based formats. This study is rooted in the lived experiences of stakeholders in addressing recent federal legislative mandates and guidelines for the oversight and co-ordination of mental health service delivery to youth in foster care. Numerous themes emerged that provide context in employing a team-based approach for youth engaged with multiple child-serving systems. Eight themes emerged that illustrate the necessary components of successfully implementing Informed Consent and shared decision-making as well as the barriers and concerns germane to this process. The findings address the nuanced complexity of and tensions with the trade-offs inherent in delivering mental health care to youth involved in foster care. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

A best-worst scaling experiment to identify patient-centered claims-based outcomes for evaluation of pediatric antipsychotic monitoring programs.

OBJECTIVE: This article employs a best-worst scaling (BWS) experiment to identify the claims-based outcomes that matter most to patients and other relevant parties when evaluating pediatric antipsychotic monitoring programs in the United States. DATA SOURCES: Patients and relevant parties, with pediatric antipsychotic oversight and treatment experience, completed a BWS experiment, including policymakers (n = 31), foster care alumni (n = 28), caseworkers (n = 23), prescribing clinicians (n = 32), and caregivers (n = 18). STUDY DESIGN: Respondents received surveys with a scenario on antipsychotic monitoring programs and ranked 11 candidate claims-based outcomes as most and least important for program evaluation. DATA ANALYSIS: Stratified by respondent group, best-worst scores were calculated to identify the relative importance of the claims-based outcomes. A conditional logit examined whether candidate outcomes for safety, quality, and unintended consequences were preferred over reduction in antipsychotic treatment, the outcome used most often to evaluate antipsychotic monitoring programs. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Safety indicators (eg, antipsychotic co-pharmacy, cross-class polypharmacy, higher than recommended doses) ranked among the top three candidate outcomes across respondent groups and were an important complement to antipsychotic treatment reduction. Foster care alumni prioritized "antipsychotic treatment reduction" and "increased psychosocial treatment." Caseworkers, prescribers, and caregivers prioritized "increased follow-up after treatment initiation." Potential unintended consequences of an antipsychotic monitoring program ranked lowest, including increased use of other psychotropic medication classes (as a substitute), increased psychiatric hospital stays, and increased emergency room utilization. Results of the conditional logit model found only caregivers significantly preferred other indicators over antipsychotic treatment reduction, preferring improvements in follow-up care (5.78) and psychosocial treatment (4.53) and reduction in prescriptions of higher than recommended doses (3.64). CONCLUSIONS: The BWS experiment supported rank ordering of candidate claims-based outcomes demonstrating the opportunity for future studies to align outcomes used in antipsychotic monitoring program evaluations with community preferences, specifically by diversifying metrics to include safety and quality indicators.

Differences in Medicaid Antipsychotic Medication Measures Among Children with SSI, Foster Care, and Income-Based Aid.

BACKGROUND: Concerns about antipsychotic prescribing for children, particularly those enrolled in Medicaid and with Supplemental Security Income (SSI), continue despite recent calls for selective use within established guidelines. OBJECTIVES: To (a) examine the application of 6 quality measures for antipsychotic medication prescribing in children and adolescents receiving Medicaid and (b) understand distinctive patterns across eligibility categories in order to inform ongoing quality management efforts to support judicious antipsychotic use. METHODS: Using data for 10 states from the 2008 Medicaid Analytic Extract (MAX), a cross-sectional assessment of 144,200 Medicaid beneficiaries aged < 21 years who received antipsychotics was conducted to calculate the prevalence of 6 quality measures for antipsychotic medication management, which were developed in 2012-2014 by the National Collaborative for Innovation in Quality Measurement. These measures addressed antipsychotic polypharmacy, higher-than-recommended doses of antipsychotics, use of psychosocial services before antipsychotic initiation, follow-up after initiation, baseline metabolic screening, and ongoing metabolic monitoring. RESULTS: Compared with children eligble for income-based Medicaid, children receiving SSI and in foster care were twice as likely to receive higher-than-recommended doses of antipsychotics (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.4, 95% CI = 2.3-2.6; AOR = 2.5, 95% CI = 2.4-2.6, respectively) and multiple concurrent antipsychotic medications (AOR = 2.2, 95% CI = 2.0-2.4; AOR = 2.2, 95% CI = 2.0-2.4, respectively). However, children receiving SSI and in foster care were more likely to have appropriate management, including psychosocial visits before initiating antipsychotic treatment and ongoing metabolic monitoring. While children in foster care were more likely to experience baseline metabolic screening, SSI children were no more likely than children eligible for income-based aid to receive baseline screening. CONCLUSIONS: While indicators of overuse were more common in SSI and foster care groups, access to follow-up, metabolic monitoring, and psychosocial services was somewhat better for these children. However, substantial quality shortfalls existed for all groups, particularly metabolic screening and monitoring. Renewed efforts are needed to improve antipsychotic medication management for all children. DISCLOSURES: This project was supported by grant number U18HS020503 from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Additional support for Rutgers-based participants was provided from AHRQ grants R18 HS019937 and U19HS021112, as well as the New York State Office of Mental Health. The content of this study is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of AHRQ, CMS, or the New York State Office of Mental Health. Finnerty has been the principle investigator on research grants/contracts from Bristol Myers Squibb and Sunovion, but her time on these projects is fully supported by the New York State Office of Mental Health. Scholle, Byron, and Morden work for the National Committee for Quality Assurance, a not-for-profit organization that develops and maintains quality measures. Neese-Todd was at Rutgers University at the time of this study and is now employed by the National Committee for Quality Assurance. The other authors have no financial relationships relevant to this article to disclose. Study concept and design were contributed by Finnerty, Neese-Todd, and Crystal, assisted by Scholle, Leckman-Westin, Horowitz, and Hoagwood. Scholle, Byron, Morden, and Hoagwood collected the data, and data interpretation was performed by Pritam, Bilder, Leckman-Westin, and Finnerty, with assistance from Scholle, Byron, Crystal, Kealey, and Neese-Todd. The manuscript was written by Leckman-Westin, Kealey, and Horowitz and revised by Layman, Crystal, Leckman-Westin, Finnerty, Scholle, Neese-Todd, and Horowitz, along with the other authors.

Rapid Growth Of Antipsychotic Prescriptions For Children Who Are Publicly Insured Has Ceased, But Concerns Remain.

The rapid growth of antipsychotic medication use among publicly insured children in the early and mid-2000s spurred new state efforts to monitor and improve prescription behavior. A starting point for many oversight initiatives was the foster care system, where most of the children are insured publicly through Medicaid. To understand the context and the effects of these initiatives, we analyzed patterns and trends in antipsychotic treatment of Medicaid-insured children in foster care and those in Medicaid but not in foster care. We found that the trend of rapidly increasing use of antipsychotics appears to have ceased since 2008. Children in foster care treated with antipsychotic medications are now more likely than other Medicaid-insured children to receive psychosocial interventions and metabolic monitoring for the side effects of the medications. However, challenges persist in increasing safety monitoring and access to psychosocial treatment. Development of specialized managed care plans for children in foster care represents a promising policy opportunity. New national quality measures for safe and judicious antipsychotic medication use are also now available to guide improvement. Oversight policies developed for foster care appear to have potential for adaptation to the broader population of Medicaid-covered children.

Access to Psychosocial Services Prior to Starting Antipsychotic Treatment Among Medicaid-Insured Youth.

OBJECTIVE: To examine rates and predictors of receiving a psychosocial service before initiating antipsychotic treatment among young people in the Medicaid program. METHOD: A retrospective new-user cohort study of 8 state Medicaid programs focused on children and adolescents 0 to 20 years, initiating antipsychotic treatment (N = 24,372). The proportion receiving a psychosocial service in the 3 months before initiating antipsychotic treatment was calculated and stratified by socio-demographic and diagnostic characteristics arranged in 9 hierarchical groups, as follows: developmental, psychotic/bipolar, disruptive, attention-deficit/hyperactivity, obsessive-compulsive, stress, major depressive, anxiety, and other disorders. RESULTS: Less than one-half of youth received a psychosocial service before initiating antipsychotic treatment (48.8%). Compared to younger adolescents (12-17 years) initiating antipsychotic treatment (51.5%), corresponding younger children (0-5 years; 39.2%) and older adolescents (18-20 years; 40.1%), but not older children (6-11 years; 51.5%), were significantly less likely to have received a psychosocial service. In relation to youth diagnosed with psychotic or bipolar disorder (52.7%), those diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity (43.3%), developmental (41.4%), depressive (46.5%), or anxiety (35.6%) disorder were significantly less likely to have received a psychosocial service during the 3 months before antipsychotic initiation. By contrast, youth diagnosed with stress disorders (61.2%) were significantly more likely than those diagnosed with psychotic or bipolar disorders (52.7%) to have received a psychosocial service before starting an antipsychotic. CONCLUSION: A majority of Medicaid-insured youth initiating antipsychotic treatment have not received a psychosocial service in the preceding 3 months. This service pattern highlights a critical gap in access to psychosocial services.

Foster care, externalizing disorders, and antipsychotic use among Medicaid-enrolled youths.

OBJECTIVES: The authors investigated the extent to which clinical diagnoses of externalizing disorders explain higher rates of antipsychotic use by foster care youths. METHODS: Medicaid claims data from 44 states for 2009 for youths in foster care (N=301,894) and those not in foster care (N=5,092,574) were analyzed, excluding those with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism, and major depressive disorder. Logistic regressions assessed the relationship between foster care, externalizing disorders, and antipsychotic use. RESULTS: Foster care youths had higher rates of externalizing disorders than the comparison group (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, 17.3% versus 6.5%; disruptive behavior disorder, 7.2% versus 2.5%; conduct disorder, 2.3% versus .5%) and greater antipsychotic use (7.4% versus 1.4%). Foster care remained a significant predictor of antipsychotic use after control for demographic and diagnostic covariates, including externalizing disorders (adjusted odds ratio=2.59, 95% confidence interval=2.54-2.63). CONCLUSIONS: High rates of externalizing disorder diagnoses only partially explained elevated levels of antipsychotic use in this vulnerable population.

Best Practices: MEDNET: a multistate policy maker-researcher collaboration to improve prescribing practices.

States face new federal requirements to monitor psychotropic prescribing practices for children and adults enrolled in Medicaid. Effective use of quality measurement and quality improvement strategies hold the promise of improved outcomes for public mental health systems. The Medicaid/Mental Health Network for Evidence-Based Treatment (MEDNET), funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, is a multistate Medicaid quality collaborative with the Rutgers University Center for Health Services Research on Pharmacotherapy, Chronic Disease Management, and Outcomes. This column describes the development, infrastructure, challenges, and early evidence of success of this public-academic partnership, the first multistate Medicaid quality improvement collaborative to focus on psychotropic medications.