Posted by Michael Wonder on 02 Jul 2017
Over 16,000 Australian children prescribed antipsychotics, PBS data shows
3 July 2017 - A mufti day at school, knee-length shorts and a teenage taunt triggered Kalei's first panic attack.
In hindsight, it is easy to see the warning signs. At the time, Kalei's mum Kim thought it was just teenage angst.
"But when I found out she was cutting herself, that's when I realised: 'Oh my god, something's really wrong here' ... she was 15 years old," Kim said.
A total of 16,570 toddlers, children and teenagers under 17 were prescribed antipsychotics in 2015, Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme data seen by Fairfax Media shows, amounting to a cost of more than $4.1 million to the PBS.
