The effect of the Roots of Empathy program on the use of psychotropic medications among youth in Manitoba

Background: Psychotropic medications prescriptions to youth have increased. Roots of Empathy (ROE) is a social and emotional learning program that may influence the use of psychotropic medication. Methods: Administrative data was analyzed in a matched sample of children who received ROE during 2002/03 to 2012/13. Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate the association between ROE and psychotropic medication dispensations. Results: Few significant differences were observed. Children who received ROE in kindergarten to grade 3 had a lower adjusted hazard for an anxiolytic dispensation. Children who received ROE in grade 7 to 8 had a higher hazard for an antipsychotic dispensation. Males who received the program had an increased hazard for an antipsychotic dispensation. Conclusion: There was no consistent differences in the likelihood of being dispensed a psychotropic medication between children who received ROE and children who did not in Manitoba.