Mandatory certification for clozapine prescribing

Should CPD for opioid prescribing be mandatory?

Dear Colleagues, By the time this issue of Canadian Family Physician is published, we will have celebrated Family Medicine Forum’s 15th year; those at the Annual Meeting of Members will have decided on whether to support a proposal for a smaller, skills-based board; and your Board of Directors will have considered the Federation of Medical Regulatory Authorities of Canada’s (FMRAC’s) request to...

Clozapine Prescribing in a Canadian Outpatient Population

OBJECTIVE Description of demographics of an outpatient population of clozapine users. METHODS Retrospective chart review study of an urban population diagnosed with schizophrenia. Assessment of therapeutic histories in relation to clinical practice guidelines. RESULTS Seventy-seven of the 467 patients were on clozapine therapy. Average patients' age was 39.4 ± 11.8 years) and 68% were males...

Further discussion on mandatory CPD for opiate prescribing.

Clozapine Monitoring in Clinical Practice: Beyond the Mandatory Requirement

Clozapine is effective in treatment resistant schizophrenia; however, it is underutilised probably because of its side effects. The side effects are also the potential reasons for clozapine discontinuation. A mandatory requirement for its use is regular monitoring of white blood cell count and absolute neutrophil count. However there are many side effects that need monitoring in clinical practi...

Clozapine: a review of clinical practice guidelines and prescribing trends

BACKGROUND Clozapine effectiveness in the treatment of refractory schizophrenia has been sustained by published evidence in the last two decades, despite the introduction of safer options. DISCUSSION Current clinical practice guidelines have strongly recommended the use of clozapine in treatment-resistant schizophrenia, but prescribing trends do not appear to have followed such recommendation...