PRESCRIBING ATTITUDES OF DIFFERENT PHYSICIAN GROUPS REGARDING FLUOXETINE

OBJECTIVE: TO determine the attitudes and prescribing patterns of fami ly medicine and psychiatric physicians regarding fluoxetine. DESIGN: A three-part questionnaire was distributed to the Departments of Family Medicine and Psychiatry. The survey included topics associated with f luoxetine use that have received broad professional attention, such as drug-induced suicidal and aggressive behavior. SETTING: The Family Pr actice Medical Group and the Department of Psychiatry at the Universit y of Florida. PARTICIPANTS: Mailing lists from both above departments were used to distribute surveys to residents, fellows, and attending/f aculty members of each department. Eighty-seven surveys were mailed. M AIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Survey questions were divided into three section s to help determine current attitudes of prescribing fluoxetine: eight short cases, 16 statements, and demographic data. RESULTS: The return rate was 69 percent following a mailing and a hand-delivered copy. Re sponses were dichotomized to agree or disagree and were analyzed by Fi sher's exact test. Psychiatrists were much more likely than family pra ctitioners to prescribe fluoxetine for obsessive-compulsive disorder ( OCD), and more likely to prescribe for a patient with a history of sub stance abuse or seizure disorder. Psychiatrists were more aware of saf ety issues; however, drug-interaction knowledge was weak in both group s. CONCLUSIONS: Family practitioners, being the most predominant of me dical specialists, appeared equally comfortable with prescribing fluox etine in most circumstances compared with psychiatrists. However, ther e is a need for pharmacists to provide up-to-date drug information on fluoxetine to all healthcare professionals.