The appropriate use of psychotropic drugs

The history of psychiatric services and treatment is reviewed from the sedatives and psychotherapy of the 1930s, through electroconvulsive therapy in the 1940s, Rauwolphia and Chlorpromazine in the 1950s, followed by barbiturates then benzodiazepines in more recent times. The move to treatment in the community rather than in institutional settings is discussed, as is the need for care in the use of psychotropic drugs.