Report reveals high usage as guidelines warn elderly should not even be prescribed such drugs.
Ireland has one of the highest rates of long-term benzodiazepine usage in the elderly — even though older people shouldn’t be prescribed these drugs.
Prescription guidelines advise “complete avoidance” of these drugs, which are generally prescribed for anxiety, agitation, and sleep disorders, for people over the age of 65 as they pose a high risk of dizziness, confusion, and falls.
An OECD report entitled Tackling Wasteful Spending on Health says more than 60 people per 1,000 population are using such tranquilisers on a long-term basis here; the OECD average is less than half that at under 30 users per 1,000 population.
Source: Irish Examiner, 12/01/2017
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