The Effectiveness of Pharmacotherapeutics for Patients with Psychosocial Disorders - Essay Example

"The Effectiveness of Pharmacotherapeutics for Patients with Psychosocial Disorders" is a well-written example of a paper on the disorder.
Behavioural and Pharmacotherapeutic interventions are strategies for treatment that are adopted for managing psychosocial disorders. Group context is paramount while determining the effectiveness and or failure of any behavioural or pharmacotherapeutic intervention for mental disorders and especially in the case of therapeutic groups as shown by Townsend (2013, p. 167-168). Guidelines are pronouncements in support of or recommendations of particular approaches and actions on mental health conditions and are not mandatory. However, standards are often accompanied by the mechanism of intervention and are mandatory. Current trends in psychiatric diagnosis require that practitioners and service providers choose a therapy intervention which has a validation by research (evidence-based) for effectiveness. Scientific research has, therefore, been pointed out as critical in evaluating the effectiveness of any therapy and intervention adopted in mental health treatment. For instance, RCT (randomized control trials) have increasingly been adopted as effective standards in the estimation of effects of treatment for the psychiatric cases (Mohr 2009, p. 19).

Efficacy or effectiveness in treatment alludes to validation or ascertainment of effects of the application of a particular therapy as against an alternative. It is, however, worth noting that scientific methods in the evaluation of the effectiveness of the interventions are a relatively new method of evaluation as compared to the traditional mechanisms of determination by doctors and patients through observable outcomes of therapy. The evidence-based conclusions are agreed upon after a careful evaluation of volumes of researched works and which vary in methodologies and techniques. Therefore, efforts adopted for establishing whether interventions on mental health are sound is based on having a scientifically-backed intervention.

Mental health practitioners have been increasingly using pharmacotherapy, which is an adjunct to a group or individual psychotherapy. However, it is noted that pharmacotherapy is only effective in relieving physical as well as behavioural problems as against resolving emotional problems by a patient. This, therefore, justifies the need for such scientific evaluation in evidence-based evaluation for determination of the effectiveness of behavioural and pharmacotherapeutic interventions employed. Such an evaluation brings about reduction in uncertainties that would be pointed out from the subjective judgments only. Besides, evidence-based evaluations boost confidence for both the practitioners and the patients in the use of any behavioural and pharmacotherapeutic intervention for mental cases. Nevertheless, as Townsend (2013, p. 70) reasons, while applying and preparing of the standards and guidelines, the welfare of the patients must be highly regarded and all mechanisms to avoid its impairment are paramount.

This paper, therefore, identifies that the medical field is evolving and much attention is being accorded to evidence while determining the most effective therapies to adopt in management of psychosocial disorders. RCTs are scientific methods that have been in use over the years for such determination and have been pointed out as more reliable while compared to the traditional subjective analysis of the practitioners and patients. Prior to these guidelines, medical practitioners and patients determined the effectiveness of any kind of therapy through personal judgment. This would therefore be hampered by personal prejudice and bias, and this would lack justifiable evidence for support or otherwise disapproval of the therapy. Research-based evidence and validation to effective therapeutic interventions are not only critical but also an important standard to be observed in modern-day behavioural and pharmacotherapeutic interventions adopted for managing psychosocial disorders.