SPECIAL REPORT: A state of high anxiety over Ireland's antidepressant prescription

Today's Irish Examiner investigation should be the beginning of a wider-ranging look at the manifold variations of antidepressant prescription around the country, says Siobhán Barry.

With the move from the fragmented Health Board system of care to a streamlined HSE in 2005 it was expected that 'post code' differences of practice might be ironed out and that should disparities become apparent, these would be examined to account for discrepancy and appropriate remedial action to follow.

Today's piece by Catherine Shanahan reveals wide national variations in prescribing psychotropic medication that might reasonably have been expected to have been recognised and analysed internally by the HSE in their routine audits of their financial outlay and explanations sought.