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<p>Overprescribing can be addressed by taking a shared decision-making approach and
optimising a person's medicines, and by ensuring that patients are prescribed the
right medicines at the right time, in the right doses.</p><p>NHS England has published
Optimising personalised care for adults prescribed medicines associated with dependence
or withdrawal symptoms: framework for action. It aims to further reduce inappropriate
prescribing of medicines which can cause withdrawal, such as anti-depressants, where
they may no longer be the most clinically appropriate treatment for patients and alternatives
to medicines may be equally or more appropriate. More information on the framework
is available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/optimising-personalised-care-for-adults-prescribed-medicines-associated-with-dependence-or-withdrawal-symptoms/"
target="_blank">https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/optimising-personalised-care-for-adults-prescribed-medicines-associated-with-dependence-or-withdrawal-symptoms/</a></p><p>NHS
England provides support to integrated care boards (ICBs) and primary care as the
Framework is implemented. For example, there is National medicines optimisation opportunities
for the NHS, which includes an opportunity for addressing inappropriate antidepressant
prescribing, with more information available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/national-medicines-optimisation-opportunities-2023-24/"
target="_blank">https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/national-medicines-optimisation-opportunities-2023-24/</a></p><p>There
is also Specialist Pharmacy Service advice on deprescribing antidepressants, for which
more information is available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/deprescribing-of-antidepressants-for-depression-and-anxiety/"
target="_blank">https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/deprescribing-of-antidepressants-for-depression-and-anxiety/</a></p><p>There
is annual investment of £2.3 billion until 2024 in mental health services and NHS
Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression (which delivered 670,000 courses of treatment
in 2022/23). More information is available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-talking-therapies-for-anxiety-and-depression-annual-reports/2022-23"
target="_blank">https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-talking-therapies-for-anxiety-and-depression-annual-reports/2022-23</a></p><p>There
is also a national programme to ensure social prescribing is an option for patients,
as well as funding for social prescribers through the Additional Roles Reimbursement
Scheme (ARRS). More information is available at the following links:</p><p><a href="https://www.england.nhs.uk/personalisedcare/social-prescribing/"
target="_blank">https://www.england.nhs.uk/personalisedcare/social-prescribing/</a></p><p><a
href="https://www.england.nhs.uk/gp/expanding-our-workforce/" target="_blank">https://www.england.nhs.uk/gp/expanding-our-workforce/</a></p><p>There
is also support for delivering Structured Medication Reviews, including those on medicines
associated with dependence and withdrawal symptoms), via: Health Innovation Network
training to help build GP and prescribing health care professionals' confidence in,
and understanding of, the complex issues surrounding stopping inappropriate medicines
safely. Guidance is also published by NHS England on Structured Medication Review
and Medicines Optimisation, which is available at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/structured-medication-reviews-and-medicines-optimisation/"
target="_blank">https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/structured-medication-reviews-and-medicines-optimisation/</a></p><p>Offering
treatments that are not medicines is also key to addressing overprescribing. Many
other initiatives delivered across the National Health Service contribute towards
this.</p>
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