Which antidepressant would psychiatrists and nurses from a developing country choose for themselves?

OBJECTIVE

To determine the prescribing preference of mental health professionals in a developing country for antidepressants if they themselves developed a depressive illness.

METHODS

A specifically designed self reporting questionnaire was used to investigate which antidepressant was the preferred choice of psychiatrists and nurses and the factors which influenced their decision making.

RESULTS

Fluoxetine was the antidepressant most likely to be chosen by psychiatrists for themselves, followed by escitalopram and tricyclic antidepressant. A total of 21 (27.6%) nurses said that they did not know which antidepressant they would prefer for themselves and 22 (29%) said that they would choose a benzodiazepine. Majority of the psychiatrists (71.9%) had more experience with SSRIs, 26.6% with tricyclic antidepressants and only about 1.5% had used venlafaxine and mirtazapine. Efficacy and safety of antidepressants were the two most important factors in selecting an antidepressant.

CONCLUSIONS

SSRIs are the preferred antidepressants of Pakistani psychiatrists and nurses for their patients and for themselves. Efficacy and safety of a drug are likely to play a greater role in drug choice than cost of the drug.