UEL academic backs call for drug dependency help
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Published
30 June 2023
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The University of East London's Professor John Read has added his name to an open letter appealing to the UK government for immediate action to address the alarming issue of prescribed drug dependence and withdrawal.
The letter, published in the British Medical Journal, highlights the dire need for specialist NHS services to assist patients who have suffered harm from prescription medications, such as antidepressants and benzodiazepines.
The 16 co-signatories, including psychiatrists, research professors and people with experience of withdrawal, wrote the letter following an episode of BBC1's Panorama, which shed light on the problem affecting millions of people around the world.
The investigation underscored the lack of NHS support services available to individuals experiencing severe withdrawal symptoms as a result of prescribed medications and the absence of proper tapering guidance from national clinical guidelines.
The open letter concludes, "We believe that the NHS has a clinical and moral obligation to help those who have been harmed by taking their medication as prescribed. Panorama has revealed the scale of the problem and the horrendous impact it has had on so many people's lives.
"To help mitigate these impacts, we urgently call upon the UK government to fund and implement withdrawal support services, including a national helpline."
Professor Read said, "I hope that this open letter serves as a wake-up call to the UK government and prompts immediate action to address the dire situation of prescribed drug dependence and withdrawal.
"We aim to secure the necessary support services that patients need and deserve. By providing comprehensive withdrawal support, we can help alleviate the suffering of hundreds of thousands of individuals."
Professor Read works in the Department of Professional Psychology in UEL's School of Psychology. Before his present position, he worked for nearly 20 years as a clinical psychologist and manager of mental health services in the UK and the USA.
His research over many years has built a strong body of understanding of the impact of anti-depressants and has underpinned discussions about the over-medicalisation of the condition and how patients are often deprived of the information they need to come off their medication safely.
His latest major piece of research, published in April in the journal Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry, raised further doubts as to the efficacy of antidepressants, as well as adding to concerns that these pills may increase suicide.