Mental Health Medications

Course overview

Course Description: This course examines the major categories of psychotherapeutic medications used in the treatment of mental health disorders, including antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications, stimulants, antipsychotics, and mood stabilizers. Learners will explore how these medications work, their primary clinical applications, common and serious side effects, and the evidence base supporting their use. The course also addresses special considerations for populations including children, older adults, and women during the childbearing years, as well as critical patient safety practices such as medication monitoring, drug interactions, and safe discontinuation. This course on mental health medications is designed for social workers, professional counselors, psychologists, nurses, and substance abuse counselors, who do clinical work. This course is appropriate for intermediate and advanced level practitioners who wish to develop or increase their knowledge of psychotherapeutic medications and their clinical applications. It may also be useful for licensed clinicians who require continuing education courses for license renewal. Authors: National Institute of Mental Health Learning Objectives: This course will provide a professional with detailed information about mental health medications. Specifically, the practitioner will: 1. Identify the major categories of medications used to treat mental health disorders and describe the primary clinical indications for each category. 2. Distinguish the side effect profiles and drug interaction risks associated with antidepressants, antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, anti-anxiety medications, and stimulants. 3. Apply knowledge of special population considerations including children, older adults, and women during the childbearing years when evaluating medication safety and clinical decision-making. Citation: National Institute of Mental Health. (2023). Mental health medications. National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/mental-health-medications