App helps patients to start and stop taking anti-depressants
IVM supplements advice provided by GP and pharmacist
With the new Start & Stop Anti-Depressants app from the Institute for Responsible Medicine Use (Instituut voor Verantwoord Medicijngebruik, IVM), patients taking anti-depressants can see at a glance what effect their anti-depression treatment is having. The main purpose of the app is to provide independent information to people starting or stopping a course of medication. With the app, the IVM aims to promote the sensible and safe use of anti-depressants. The app can be downloaded free via www.startenstop.nl.
Starters and stoppers comprise a large group among the nearly 1 million people who take anti-depressants each year. In practice, starting and getting off anti-depressants is extremely tricky. ‘For example, what many starters don’t realise is that it can often take two to four weeks before the drug starts to have any effect,’ Ruud Coolen van Brakel, director of the IVM explains. ‘That is difficult because you often do start noticing the side effects from day one.’ Many people stop taking anti-depressants too early because of the side effects, although they need these drugs to get better again. People wanting to stop have a tough time because of the risk of withdrawal symptoms. Coolen van Brakel says that while the app does not replace the advice provided by a doctor or pharmacist, it can supplement it. 'When you start taking anti-depressants, your whole world turns upside down. With the app, you can take a quiet moment to read what effects the anti-depressants are having on your health and behaviour. Hopefully, this will prevent people starting a course of anti-depressants from stopping too quickly and will help those wishing to stop their treatment to cut down in a responsible way.
MoodMeter
An important element of the app is the ‘MoodMeter’, which allows the user to keep track of his or her mood and measure how depressive he or she is at that moment. This gives the user and the practitioner an understanding of the effect of the treatment and of the consequences of stopping. ‘The MoodMeter could be an excellent aid to GPs, psychiatrists and psychotherapists,’ says Coolen van Brakel. ‘By asking the patient to fill in the MoodMeter, the practitioner can see at a glance how the treatment is progressing. The patient can even e-mail the information to his or her practitioner.’ The basis of the MoodMeter is the scientific and widely used BDI questionnaire.
Startenstop.nl
The information on the app is based on the Multidisciplinary Guideline for Depression in Adults (2009) . More information on starting and stopping a course of anti-depressants and on depression can be found at www.startenstop.nl. As of yet, the app has only been developed for iPhones, but the IVM is working with Logica, the developer of the app, on a version for other smartphones. Furthermore, the IVM intends to develop more Start & Stop apps in the future. The Anti-Depressants Start & Stop app was funded by Menzis. The healthcare insurer wants to stimulate the sensible use of anti-depressants. Information about the IVM can be found at
www.medicijngebruik.nl.
Press
Questions? Contact IVM via Vanessa Rompelberg, tel. 0888 800 400,
e mail pers@medicijngebruik.nl.
Contact Menzis via Richard Lancee, tel. 06-55368179,
e-mail lancee@menzis.nl
Contact Logica via Christoph Linke, tel. 020-5713777,
e-mail pr.nl@logica.nl
Logica
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