Understanding the Processes of Consultation: Some Models and Their Uses

Abstract

This article examines a range of models for analysis of doctor-patient consultation. The models lie on a continuum which has at one pole the notion of scientific explanation, prediction and control, and at the other the notion of personal understanding. It is argued that all the models are relevant to the work of the general practitioner and that the practitioner needs to acquire a repertoire of skills if patient care is to be improved.