Novamind utah3/21/2023 “If it's not on the mind of every psychiatrist who treats treatment-resistant depression, it darn better be because it helps. “I don’t think anyone can ignore it at this point,” says Chepke. He’s now seeing close to ten patients a day. When Spravato was first approved in 2019, he’d only see about two patients a week. Spravato, which is made by Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen, is approved to treat adults with treatment-resistant depression and depressive symptoms in adults with major depressive disorder with suicidal thoughts or behavior.Ĭraig Chepke, a psychiatrist with his own practice in Huntersville, North Carolina, says the FDA approving Spravato, and the fact that insurance companies are now covering the drug, has helped usher in the mainstreaming of ketamine treatments. Much of the growing interest in ketamine is thanks to the FDA approving Spravato, which is a nasal spray that contains a ketamine derivative called esketamine, in 2019. Ketamine has largely lost its stigma as a party drug and a “horse tranquilizer.” But it took time, even though ketamine has been an FDA-approved anesthetic for decades used on the battlefield, in pediatrics and yes, by veterinarians. “Ketamine is having its time,” says Conforti. Yaron Conforti, the CEO of Novamind, says ketamine is enjoying a moment, especially as mental health awareness has increased during the pandemic and more people are looking for different types of treatment. Last year, it saw 20,000 patients and says by the end of the year Novamind is on pace to see 65,000 patients, a 225% increase. Earlier this year, the company said it had a two-week wait time at each of its clinics. ![]() Novamind, which owns a Utah-based chain of clinics under the name Cedar Psychiatry that offers ketamine-assisted therapy, is trying to keep up with the demand. “It’s the most easily accessible, legal option, which is leading to the boom around ketamine right now.”įield Trip is not the only one benefiting from how ketamine has gone mainstream. “When people realize that there is a legal option available right now that can be provided with medical supervision and professional therapy, it becomes a really appealing option,” says Levy. The demand for psychedelic-assisted therapy is growing, and while FDA-approved psilocybin or MDMA is still years away, ketamine is already here. The company says it will expand to 20 locations by the end of 2021 and scale to 75 clinics by 2024. and Canada, says he’s seeing an increase in the number of patient visits across every location. Ronan Levy, the CEO of Field Trip Health, which has eight clinics across the U.S. (Some companies are trying to remove the psychedelic experience altogether, while others are modifying psychedelics’ molecules to make the trip shorter.) But for ketamine, a patient can be in and out of one of these swanky clinics in two hours. One of the biggest hurdles in widespread treatment of psychedelic-assisted therapy for drugs like psilocybin, LSD and MDMA is the duration of the experience, which can range from 4 to 12 hours. ![]() ![]() Ketamine also has another advantage over other psychedelics: it’s short-acting. While psilocybin, MDMA and LSD grab most of the headlines for the promising clinical results as potential treatments for depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues, ketamine is able to cash in on the growing interest in psychedelics.
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