Psychopharmacological Treatment and Its Implications for Social Work

The universality of psychopharmacological treatment in the care of the mentally ill requires that the social worker have a knowledge of the specific drugs used and their main areas of action, the side effects of medication, and the important nondrug factors affecting treatment outcome. The aim of this paper is to provide the basis for an orientation of the social worker to this treatment method. Drugs in common usage are categorized together with their target symptoms and possible side effects.