Abstract
Objectives: The aim of this study is to detail the author's experience of working on a consultation-liaison basis within three different group general practices. The data are used to show the following: 1. The nature of patients referred, the treatments used, and the outcome of treatment. 2. Differences between the practices and between the individual general practitioners with regard to referral patterns and related matters. 3. The advantages and disadvantages of this type of practice for patients, general practitioners and psychiatrists.
Methods: Detailed case notes are kept for all patients seen by the author, and the study data are based on these. Discussion of these data and of the matters outlined above is informed by a brief review of the relevant literature.
Results: The results suggest that this type of work has a number of unique advantages for all concerned. For patients, anxiety about referral to a psychiatrist is reduced because consultation takes place in an environment which is familiar to them. This increases the likelihood of ambivalent patients agreeing to a psychiatric referral. For general practitioners, it is possible to ensure that patients are seen very quickly (usually within a week) and discussion about their concerns is available almost immediately. For psychiatrists there is the reward of being in close daily contact with referring doctors and of seeing patients when it is not timely, rather than under the constraints of a waiting list.