Mdedge Psychcast

Show Notes By Jacqueline Posada, MD, 4th-year resident in the department of psychiatry & behavioral sciences at George Washington University, Washington. In this episode, Lorenzo Norris, MD, host of the MDedge Psychcast, interviews Jonathan M. Meyer, MD, about prescribing clozapine and understanding barriers of use. Dr. Meyer is clinical professor of psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, and a psychopharmacology consultant with the California Department of State Hospitals. Overview of clozapine Clozapine is an effective medication for treatment-resistant schizophrenia and lethality/suicide. Clozapine is underused by clinicians for many reasons. Clinicians have less comfort with prescribing clozapine. Too few trainees are exposed during residency to prescribing clozapine. Using clozapine during training provides the knowledge and comfort necessary to prescribe it once out in practice. Fear of prescribing clozapine outweighs the benefits to patients who need it. Other barriers include monito