When beginning to tackle the question of whether psychologists should be granted the ability to prescribe drugs, one could imagine the answer would be simple to find. However, upon closer examination and consideration, the answer and support in either direction is not clear cut. Though both sides present equally compelling arguments, allowing psychologists prescription privileges emerges as the most convincing. This conclusion comes about mainly because of the belief that psychologists would be able to better serve their patients. Exactly how the support for this argument breaks down and possible counter points will be the focus of this paper.
The major argument for allowing prescription privileges is that it would grant psychologists the ability to better care for their patients. One of the core principles of counseling psychology, for example, is that the psychologist treats the patient as a holistic being (Rinaldi, 2012, p.1219). With the …show more content…
The concern is that once drugs are available to psychologists, they will “reach for the prescription pad rather than trying to understand the patient” (Sanua, 1995). However, this goes against a central tenant of psychology which is to view the whole of a person. This suggests that after close examination and consideration, if the most beneficial treatment is a specific drug, then the psychologists will prescribe it but not jump to that conclusion without thorough investigation. This argument also makes an example of psychiatry as relying solely on drugs for treatment, as a field having “fell to the temptation of [drugs]” (Cummings, 1992 as in Sanua, 1995). This cements the idea that psychologists, even with prescription privileges, would occupy a space in between the purely medical and psychoanalytical, uniquely qualified to treat the patient
The major argument for allowing prescription privileges is that it would grant psychologists the ability to better care for their patients. One of the core principles of counseling psychology, for example, is that the psychologist treats the patient as a holistic being (Rinaldi, 2012, p.1219). With the …show more content…
The concern is that once drugs are available to psychologists, they will “reach for the prescription pad rather than trying to understand the patient” (Sanua, 1995). However, this goes against a central tenant of psychology which is to view the whole of a person. This suggests that after close examination and consideration, if the most beneficial treatment is a specific drug, then the psychologists will prescribe it but not jump to that conclusion without thorough investigation. This argument also makes an example of psychiatry as relying solely on drugs for treatment, as a field having “fell to the temptation of [drugs]” (Cummings, 1992 as in Sanua, 1995). This cements the idea that psychologists, even with prescription privileges, would occupy a space in between the purely medical and psychoanalytical, uniquely qualified to treat the patient