Biological Drug Evaluation

• One reason why drug therapy can be effective is due to the comparison of the drug verses a placebo. Soomero (2008) reviewed 17 studies of the use of SSRIs with OCD. Patients found the drugs to be more effective than placebos in reducing symptoms of OCD for up to 3 months after treatment proving its effectiveness.
• One issue with the effectiveness of drug therapy is that it can have many serious side effects. For example, nausea, headache and insomnia are common side effects of SSRIs. They may not seem terrible at first but they can cause a person to not want to take the drug therefore making it ineffective.
• Another issue is that drug therapy only offers a short term solution and may not be effective in treating symptoms of psychological disorders. This therapy does not address the underlying cause of the issue e.g if an adult is suffering depression from a childhood trauma, anti-depressants only offer a short term solution and in long-term, the disorder will not be dealt with.
• One ethical issue with drug therapy is the use of placebos. A fundamental ethic is that no patient should be given treatment known to be inferior. When testing a new drug, there must be a control group to see if the drug works and they are given the placebo. However, this would mean lying to the patients who are suffering with some sort of disorder as well as withholding potentially effective treatment so both of these can be considered unethical.
• Another ethical issue is gaining valid consent. Many patients are vulnerable and will find it difficult to remember all potential side effects and may not be fully aware of the process they will be taking. Due to the state they are in they may not understand what they are doing and it is unethical for a doctor to prescribe a drug a patient isn't fully aware of.