Antidepressants more likely to be prescribed to LTC residents than other seniors: report

Seniors living in long-term care across the country were three times more likely to have been prescribed antidepressants over the last five years than those in the community.

Seniors living in long-term care across the country were three times more likely to have been prescribed antidepressants over the last five years than those in the community, a new report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information indicates.

Just over 60 per cent of seniors living in long-term care were prescribed antidepressants in 2017, data analyzed by the institute indicates. That rose to 62 per cent of residents by 2019 and 65 per cent in 2021.

Meanwhile, the use of antidepressants among seniors living in the community increased from 22 per cent of seniors in 2019 to 23 per cent in 2021, the report indicates.

Tracey Fisher, manager of pharmaceuticals at the Canadian Institute for Health Information, said the increased use of antidepressants among those aged 65 and older in long-term care is not surprising.

“When you think about the pandemic and the effects that that has had on seniors, especially those living in long-term care, I don’t think the results were surprising,” she said.

“But I do think they are something to pay attention to … we are always looking at trending information like this and putting it out there for decision makers to use to help make informed decisions about seniors’ care.”

The data indicated that long-term care residents were also eight times more likely to be prescribed antipsychotic drugs last year than seniors living in the community.

Antipsychotic prescriptions among long-term care residents grew from 37 per cent in 2019 to 43 per cent in 2021, the data indicated. The drugs are used to treat schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia, including delusions, aggression and agitation.