"Study Drugs": Two Months' Worth of Antidepressants Prescribed in Just 57 Seconds

[Anchor]

Ahead of the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), psychiatric medications are being mistakenly referred to as "study drugs" among some test takers. Some students who actually took them have experienced severe side effects. The problem lies with telemedicine consultations that prescribe medication solely based on a minor's claims.

Reporter Han Sung-hee reports.

[Reporter]

Ahead of the CSAT, Student A, a test taker, heard from a friend that "antidepressants help with concentration while studying."

[Student A's Mother: When I asked, "How did you find out about this?" she told me, "Kids with depression medication got it through telemedicine apps." I guess there were students taking them.]

Through a telemedicine app, Student A falsely told a doctor that she had symptoms of depression and was prescribed antidepressants.

Severe side effects soon followed.

[Student A's Mother: One day, I received a call. She said she felt like she was going crazy at her cram school. One of the severe side effects of the medication was suicidal urges. She told me she was feeling that.]

The medication prescribed to Student A carried a warning from the pharmaceutical company stating that caution is required when administering it to adolescents as it could increase suicidal urges, but no such mention was made during the consultation.

[Lee Jung-seok / Professor of Psychiatry, National Health Insurance Service Ilsan Hospital: When people without symptoms take psychiatric medications, it often leads to numerous side effects.]

I decided to obtain a prescription for depression medication myself through a telemedicine app.

When I submitted an application for consultation at an orthopedic clinic reporting symptoms of "lethargy," a phone call came immediately.

[Doctor at Orthopedic Clinic B: Shall I issue a prescription for two months' worth? (Yes.)]

Without asking any further questions about the symptoms or providing any explanation of side effects, the same medication was easily prescribed, and the phone call lasted just 57 seconds.

Unlike psychotropic drugs, which are prohibited from telemedicine prescription, antidepressants remain in a regulatory blind spot.

For this reason, the Ministry of Health and Welfare explained that starting December 24, when the full implementation of telemedicine begins, depression medications will strictly require video calls, and for minor patients, doctors will be required to confirm whether parents consent to the prescription.

However, critics point out that this is still not enough.

[Kim Hyo-won / Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Asan Medical Center: It shouldn't be just simple consent; doctors need to obtain information regarding the child's treatment from guardians as well, not just from the child.]

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety stressed that there is no such thing as a "study drug" and emphasized the need for caution when prescribing ADHD medications and cardiovascular drugs.

(Video by Kim Se-gyeong | Video Editing by Kim Yoon-sung)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.