We give a grateful hat tip to The American Society of Pharmacovigilance (ASP) for spotlighting Adverse Drug Events today. See our press release and FourthCause.org to be better informed and safer healthcare consumers. https://www.einpresswire.com/article/624086335/medication-induced-suicides-are-adverse-drug-events-not-deaths-of-despair.
The response to our akathisia info presented at the 46th annual Psychotherapy Networker Symposium was amazing. Our straightforward message reached over 4,000 mental health professionals committed to improving patient safety and saving lives by increasing awareness of akathisia.
Read the press release at https://www.einpresswire.com/article/622884669/mental-health-professionals-learn-that-suicide-can-be-a-medication-side-effect.
(Pictured below: MISSD board member Dr. Linda Stern (r) and founder Wendy Dolin presented akathisia info at the Washington, DC, conference.)
At this week’s Psychotherapy Networker Symposium, Alanis Morissette and Dick Schwarts are keynote speakers discussing trauma. MISSD will be there to talk about medication-induced suicide, which definitely causes trauma for akathisia victims and their loved ones.
Isn’t it ironic consumers aren’t informed that drugs for hair loss, acne, blood pressure, asthma, & depression can cause self-harm, violence, and suicide? For the full conference schedule, see https://www.psychnetworker.org/2023/?update#section-1917-24.
Glam’s SSRI article has some misinformation & missing info, but at least they mention that depression pills can: “cause constipation, excessive sweating, hypomania or mania, SUICIDAL urges, serotonin syndrome, and neuroleptic malignant syndrome.”
Read the full article at https://www.glam.com/1226067/so-your-antidepressant-is-killing-your-libido-heres-how-to-handle-it/.
MISSD will reach more than 4,000 healthcare practitioners at this week’s Psychotherapy Networker conference, where in-person and virtual attendees can learn more about akathisia to reduce prescribed harms and save lives. Visit us online at https://web.cvent.com/hub/events/aea59846-0fda-4e8e-8d86-6313ac14203b/exhibitors/1e4a1e20-3cae-48c6-8d4c-73c8e809f7da.
It’s good to see this Med Page Today opinion piece addresses the lack of training and education for effective suicide reduction initiatives. Unfortunately, many, if not most, emergency doctors are not trained to ask crucial questions about medications and adverse effects that can cause suicidality and suicide. Many, if not most, are also likely to miss or misdiagnose akathisia.
Read the full article at https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/suicide-watch/103472?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2023-03-09&eun=g1045428d0r&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Daily%20Headlines%20Evening%202023-03-09&utm_term=NL_Daily_DHE_dual-gmail-definition.
On behalf of the Coalition members at the March 1st meeting, Dr. Diana Zuckerman offered our support to the Commissioner and the FDA, and thanked the Commissioner for his efforts to improve the Accelerated Approval program by requiring confirmatory trials be started prior to granting accelerated approval. Patricia Kelmar discussed members’ support for the FDA to regulate lab-developed tests to ensure their accuracy. Kim Witczak and Suzanne Robotti discussed possible improvements to the FDA Advisory Committee process, based on their perspectives as consumer representatives on two FDA Advisory Committees. After the meeting was completed, Coalition members who were attending in person had informal discussions with several FDA officials.
FDA attendees: Robert Califf (Commissioner, virtual due to exposure to viruses), Peter Marks (Director, CBER, virtual), Owen Faris (OPEQ Principal Deputy Director, CDRH, virtual); In person: Julia Tierney (Chief of Staff, Office of the Commissioner), Jacqueline Corrigan-Curay, (Principal Deputy Director, CDER), Dayle Cristinizio (Director, Stakeholder Engagement, Office of External Affairs), Hilary Maston (Chief Medical Officer), Namandje Bumpus (Chief Scientist, AdCom responsibilities), Kaveeta Vasisht (Assoc Commissioner for Women’s Health), Jennifer Dooren (Director Communications and Public Engagement, Food Safety).
Coalition Attendees: In Person: Thomas Eagen (NCHR), Maria Gmitro (BISA), Denise Hyater-Lindenmuth (NWHN), Patricia Kelmar (U.S. PIRG), Suzanne Robotti (MedShadow), Kim Witczak (WoodyMatters), Diana Zuckerman (NCHR). Virtual: Tahir Amin (I-MAK), Wendy Dolin (MISSD), Helen Haskell (MAME), Rex Johnson (WAPS), Katherine Leon (SCAD Alliance), Judy Norsigan (OBOS), Linda Radach (PSAN), Reshma Ramachandran (DFA), Brian Ronholm (Consumer Reports), Tess Schulman (Medical Device Problems), Robin Strongin (NCL), Dru West (USAPN), Sophia Phillips (on behalf of the Coalition).
MISSD founder, Wendy Dolin, and board advisor, Kim Witczak, were pleased to join a coalition of consumer safety advocates from various public health organizations who spoke to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week. The coalition encouraged the FDA to improve the Accelerated Approval program by requiring confirmatory trials be started prior to granting accelerated approval. Safe patient advocates also alerted the FDA of the need to regulate lab-developed tests to ensure their accuracy and asked that the agency make improvements to its Advisory Committee process.
It’s good to see the benzo podcast taking off. Listen and learn from experts by experience, some of whom have also been on MISSD’s Akathisia Stories podcast. Read the full article at https://markets.financialcontent.com/stocks/article/abnewswire-2023-2-17-the-benzodiazepine-podcast-is-about-fighting-gaslighting-of-protracted-benzo-withdrawal-sufferers. Listen at https://thebenzodiazepinepodcast.drleeds.com/
Harvard Health Publishing has really missed the boat when describing akathisia in this MSN Q&A. To call it a movement disorder and fail to mention the inner symptoms of akathisia–symptoms of inner restlessness and delirium that can cause violence and death is shockingly disappointing. See https://www.msn.com/en-ca/health/medical/what-is-akathisia-and-how-to-treat-it-harvard-health-publishing-weighs-in/ar-AA17oDhT?li=AAggV0S.