The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety and the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability identified that psychotropic medicines are being misused and overused, particularly with older people and people with disability. Inappropriate use of psychotropic medicines has been recognised as a safety and quality issue in health care.
The use of psychotropic medicines can be appropriate for treating, or enabling the treatment of, a diagnosed mental disorder or a physical illness or physical condition. However, using psychotropic medicines, such as antipsychotics and benzodiazepines, to calm, soothe, sedate or influence or control the behaviour of people who exhibit behaviours of concern is a restrictive practice and is subject to regulatory oversight.
