Safer Antipsychotic Switching, Better Patient Outcomes
iSWITCHED Switching Tool: Empowering clinicians to safely switch patients to safer antipsychotics, improving long-term physical health outcomes and reducing risks through evidence-based guidance and decision-making tools.
Improving Patient Outcomes with Smarter, Safer Antipsychotic Switching
At iSWITCHED, we aim to reduce the preventable health risks associated with higher-risk antipsychotics. Our platform provides clinicians with structured guidance, comparative drug insights, and real-time risk assessment tools to enable safer transitions for patients with severe mental illness (SMI).
Developed through rigorous research and collaboration with patients, carers, and healthcare professionals, iSWITCHED addresses the key challenges clinicians face: fear of relapse, lack of clear protocols for switching and training, and limited time for patient engagement. With iSWITCHED, clinicians can confidently adopt safer antipsychotics, improving their patients’ mental and physical health outcomes.
The Problem
Patients with severe mental illness (SMI) are at a 2–3 times higher risk of premature death, with over 60% of these deaths caused by preventable physical health conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity. Despite the availability of safer antipsychotics, over 60% of patients remain on higher-risk antipsychotics, which exacerbate these risks due to their severe metabolic side effects. This persistence is driven by:
Fear of Relapse: Clinicians often hesitate to switch to newer and safer antipsychotics due to the risk of symptom relapse or mental health destabilisation.
Unclear Protocols for Switching: Limited or conflicting guidance leaves clinicians unsure of how to manage switching effectively, increasing hesitation.
Knowledge Gaps: Safer alternatives (e.g. aripiprazole, lurasidone, and cariprazine, etc.) remain underutilised due to insufficient clinician familiarity with their side effects, dosing, and compatibility with other medications.
Time Constraints: Routine consultations leave limited time for shared decision-making discussions with patients and carers.
Increased Administrative burden: Clinicians use various unintegrated processes for documenting and tracking switching decisions, which adds to their workload.
Our Solution
iSWITCHED is a dedicated digital switching tool that integrates seamlessly into patient health record systems, providing the tools and resources needed to navigate the complexities of antipsychotic switching confidently and effectively.