Data released following a JEP freedom of information request has revealed that use of the drugs has increased almost 40 per cent since 2010 – costing the Social Security Department half a million pounds in 2014 alone.
And professionals working with Islanders struggling to cope have said that a number of factors could be behind the trend, including:
- Loss of job security.
- Greater difficulty getting pay rises.
- Increased debt problems.
- Relationship breakdowns due to other pressures.
The FoI figures showed that 90,746 anti-depressant prescriptions were issued in Jersey in 2014, compared to 66,180 four years earlier.
