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Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To compare the prescribing practices between a research ward and general non-research wards within the same psychiatric facility. METHOD: This drug utilization survey is a retrospective naturalistic study evaluating discharge prescriptions from a tertiary-care psychiatric teaching hospital over a 2-year period. RESULTS: Overall, patients discharged from the general wards were prescribed significantly more psychotropic medications than patients discharged from the research ward. This was attributed, in part, to the greater prevalence of antipsychotic polypharmacy and anticholinergic utilization. CONCLUSIONS: We postulate that the academic environment of a research ward accounts for the differences in prescribing practices observed in our study.