Liaison psychiatry: A model for medical care on a general hospital psychiatric unit

Liaison psychiatry is traditionally practiced on the medical and surgical floors of the general hospital. The need for liaison psychiatry on the inpatient psychiatric unit as opposed to its usual setting was realized when the medical care requirements of hospitalized psychiatric patients was assessed. In many general hospitals this medical care is provided by a psychiatrist in consultation with medical and surgical colleagues. Over a three-year period at the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont 563 medical/surgical consultations were provided to the inpatient psychiatric unit. To utilize these consultations most effectively, the role best suited for the psychiatrist was that of liaison-consultee. Case examples are used to demonstrate the effectiveness of employing liaison skills in the treatment of somatic problems on the inpatient psychiatric unit. The educational implications of learning the liaison model in this context are discussed.     

The use of DSM-III in a general hospital consultation-liaison service

Eighteen months' use of DSM-III by a consultation-liaison service in a university hospital is reported. DSM-III's multiaxial system seems to be feasible and revealing, but presents some problems. Adjustment Disorder and Organic Mental Disorders were the most frequent Axis I diagnoses. Approximately one-fourth of the patients received an Axis II diagnosis and 85% received an Axis III diagnosis. In 70% of the patients there was both a psychiatric diagnosis (on Axis I or II) and a physical disorder (on Axis III). On Axis IV and V, this population appeared to be under moderate to severe psychosocial stress and had, as a group, a fair or better level of previous adaptive functioning. The possible significance of these findings and potential areas for further refinements and investigations are discussed.     

Psychiatry--family practice liaison: a collaborative approach to clinical training

In view of the growing need for effective liaison between psychiatry and family practice programs, some of the models for educational and clinical liaison are discussed, and a clinical training program is described in which psychiatry and family practice educators work collaboratively in the training of both family practice and psychiatry residents and medical students. The program is offered as a model for providing comprehensive clinical training to residents and students and comprehensive clinical care to patients.     

Admissions to a South African general hospital psychiatric unit

In a study of adminssions to the psychiatric unit of a general hospital from December 1, 1977, to November 30, 1978, data obtained from all 478 admitted patients were analyzed; the most prevalent condition was found to be the neuroses, followed by organic brain syndromes. Most patients admitted fell into the 19–39 age group, with a preponderance of male admissions between the ages of 6–39, but more admissions of females above 40. A significant difference in the occurrence of conditions between the sexes was noted: the most prevalent condition for males between the ages of 6–39 years was schizophrenia, while more females suffered from the neuroses. Males 40 years and older presented predominantly with organic brain syndromes; females in that age group presented predominantly with affective psychoses. The average length of stay for both sexes was eight days. Schizophrenia required the longest hospital stay, an average of 11 days. Seventy-eight patients (16.3%) were admitted more than once during the period of study. Conditions commonly associated with readmission were affective psychoses and schizophrenia. The role of the general hospital psychiatric unit and its advantages and shortcomings are discussed.     

The medication seminar and primary care education

This paper defines the need to provide postgraduate psychiatric education to primary care physicians, as well as the need to provide psychiatrists with teaching experiences in the primary care setting. Two psychiatrists in rural New England developed and administered, over an eight-month period, a Balint-type seminar on psychotropic medications, designed to emphasize experiential and two-way learning. The process of the seminar reflected the special problems encountered in postgraduate education of physicians in a rural area. The impact on the instructors and participants has implications for the design and development of future educational programs in both psychiatry and primary care.     

Prediction and management of pain in patients with advanced cancer

In a prospective controlled study, patients with incurable cancer and an estimated prognosis of three months to one year were allocated to two patient groups for evaluation of supportive interventions. One group, called "intensive," received home visits by a nurse practitioner acting as an extension of a multidisciplinary team; the other, termed "nonintensive," did not receive such visits. Both patient groups were periodically evaluated in their homes by an observer and by self-ratings, to measure changes in quality of life as their disease progressed. Several methodologic problems were identified, which have implications for future research. Pain problems later in the course of cancer seem to be predictable in those patients with higher scores on the Cornell Medical Index M-R scales (greater emotional disturbance) and on the Rotter Locus of Control (I-E) scale (expectation of more external control of self). The study also found that the home visiting nurse practitioners, specially trained in pain treatment, improved pain control in the "intensive" group of patients over the last 90 days of life, when pain was an increasingly major problem. Such nurses can significantly improve the quality of life for patients dying outside of institutions.     

Interdiscimplinary differences on a general hospital psychiatry unit.

A questionnaire was distributed to staff members of a 28-bed general hospital psychiatry unit to determine and compare staff perceptions of the value of psychotherapies and the role of the disciplines in conducting treatments. Marked interdisciplinary differences were reported in attitudes toward the use of psychopharmacologic agents, the importance of diagnostic evaluation, the value of psychotherapy in the treatment program, the role of various disciplines in the program, and the therapeutic community approach. Clinical implications of the magnitude of interdisciplinary differences are discussed, and recommendations are made for resolving intergroup conflict.     

The treatment of involuntary patients in the general hospital psychiatric unit

In response to pressure to assume more responsibility for chronic patients, many general hospitals have asserted that they should limit care to those suitable for voluntary treatment on an open ward. This assertion appears to be based primarily on political and symbolic arguments. The limitation of admission to voluntary patients would serve to exclude many acutely psychotic patients with excellent prognosis best treated in a general hospital. The locked ward appears to offer the maximum flexibility in dealing with illnesses which in varying degrees affect the individual's judgement and impulsivity. The limitation of psychiatric units to voluntary patients in open wards would preclude psychiatry from joining in the mission of the general hospital—the best possible care for the community it serves.     

The benefits of a psychiatric consultation--liaison service in a general hospital

In this period of increased governmental regulation and decreased reimbursement for psychiatric services by third-party carriers, a fully staffed and financially stable psychiatric consultation-liaison service in the general hospital may still generate significant benefits for patients, hospital administrators, and psychiatrists: an increased rate of diagnosis of psychiatric and medical disorders, a reduction in the length of stay of medical or surgical patients, a decreased utilization of medical services and the development of innovative consultation-liaison activities. This article summarizes these benefits and outlines training obstacles that must be overcome to increase cooperation between psychiatry and medicine so that these benefits may be realized.     

When psychiatric residents treat medical students: Passage through idealization and overidentification

The author describes a survey of psychiatric residents and faculty supervisors inquiring as to problematic aspects of the psychotherapy of medical students when treated by residents. Medical students' idealization of and identification with their resident-therapist were found to produce a significant amount of discomfort for the trainee. Difficulties in the psychotherapies were also attributed to the numerous possibilities of identification by the residents with their medical student patients. The varied forms of identification are detailed through the use of clinical vignettes submitted by respondents. It is the author's contention that psychotherapies involving these “special patients” provide a window for examining many issues in the development of the resident's professional self. Given the increasing number of medical students electing some form of personal psychotherapy and the declining number entering psychiatry residency training, the timeliness of this issue is noted.     

Psychiatric consultations in a general hospital: compliance to follow-up

Noncompliance rates for office visits following a psychiatric consultation in a general hospital may be lower than previously reported, although noncompliance is still a significant problem. There is a significant drop-out rate within two follow-up sessions. Few patients entered psychotherapy. Geriatric patients preferred only medication follow-up. The possible reasons for the lower noncompliance rate in this study are discussed.     

Characteristics and post-hospital perceptions of patients refusing inpatient treatment in a South African general hospital psychiatric unit

This paper explores characteristics and post-hospital perceptions of patients who refused general hospital psychiatric inpatient treatment in a relatively young unit. It was found that after an initial significant increase of up to 9.6% per year in these patients, the average for the 6-year period studied was 6.2% of all admissions. Most of the patients were single or divorced, not gainfully employed, refused hospital inpatient treatment within the first day after admission and were significantly younger than the controls. Substance use, adjustment and personality disorders predominated, and most of the patients were dissatisfied with some aspect of their treatment. Less than half the patients had a positive attitude towards at least one staff member. Results are discussed within the context of understanding the decision of such patients, in an attempt to deal with the problem and with reference to a consultation-liaison approach.     

Medical clinic referrals to psychiatric social work: review of 100 cases

This study examines 100 consecutive patient referrals from a general medical clinic to psychiatric social work. While much has been written from a theoretical or anecdotal perspective on the contribution of social work to medical care, there have been relatively few attempts to look in detail at actual practices. Of the 100 patients, 52 were referred for "concrete services," 30 for evaluation of a psychiatric disorder (such as depression or somatoform disorder), 20 for counseling, and 11 for assistance for a drug or alcohol problem. Although the most frequent referral to psychiatric social work by the medical clinic staff was for concrete services, half of these cases actually involved overlooked psychiatric problems, and no concrete service of any sort was perceived as necessary by the psychiatric social worker in 30% of these cases. Referring medical staff tended to view patient distress in terms of concrete needs and chose to refer to social work even when significant psychiatric diagnostic problems were identified. Analysis of the differences in reasons for referral versus actual clinical problems has implications not only for the training needs of social work in this setting, but also for the relationship between social work and psychiatry, and for the organizational and educational needs of ambulatory medical services.     

Psychiatric consultations in a Dutch university hospital: A report on 1814 referrals, compared with a literature review

A report is presented of four years of psychiatric consultations with inpatients in the University Hospital Leyden, The Netherlands. The characteristics of these 1814 consultations are compared with a comprehensive review of 42 publications (mostly from the United States) on psychiatric referral patterns in gereral hospitals. Compared to the literature, the present study covers a long period of investigation and a high number of consultations in quite a large hospital. Yet, the figures in this report are surprisingly similar to the median numbers that can be compiled from the literature. There is, however, a striking lack of conformity in the classifications used by authors in reporting reasons for referral, psychiatric diagnoses, and the actions of psychiatric consultants. A plea is made, therefore, for better definition and classification of patients seen by consultation-liaison services.     

A survey of placebo use in a general hospital

Two hundred thirty registered nurses and seventy physicians participated in a retrospective study scrutinizing placebo effects, prescribing patterns, and staff attitudes in a university-based general hospital setting. Despite copious experimental literature devoted to placebo effects over the past thirty years, the medical and surgical use of placebos seems to disregard experimental data. Although 80% of the staff had used placebos in the hospital, their knowledge of placebo effects was in many respects deficient. Within the hospital, 89% of placebo use was directed toward the amelioration of “pain”; the authors believe that emphasis should be placed on the education of staff to perceive emotional, social, and physiological concomitants of pain rather than resorting to a purely physicalistic approach. A need to acknowlege staff conflicts over the ethical use of placebos should be a significant part of this educational approach.     

Medical and surgical inpatients who referred themselves for psychiatric consultation

Medical and surgical inpatients who referred themselves for psychiatric consultation are characterized. The 25 "self-referred" compared to 787 "others" referred to the Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry Division were more likely to state depression (52%/25%) and anxiety (36%/11%) as reasons for referral. "Self-referrals" were less likely to be referred by physicians for behavior management (8%/23%), general diagnosis (4%/22%) or suicide evaluation (4%/25%). The "self-referral" represents a challenge to the current medical model referral mechanism in which the physician controls access to consultants. The data indicate that there should be a mechanism for the patient's contribution to the referral process and that increased sensitivity to psychologic difficulties in coping with medical illness would improve the use of psychiatric consultation in the medical setting.     

Operation of a medical-psychiatric unit in a general hospital setting

Patients with coexistent medical and psychiatric disorders, when both require acute-level care, are managed only with considerable difficulty in traditional hospital settings. A unit designed to offer such patients comprehensive care is described, its clinical and educational advantages discussed, and the essential administrative features of its operation identified. Since very few comparable units exist at the present, our model is offered in the hope of encouraging and assisting their future development. In view of current trends in the evolution of our field, this type of unit may well represent the advancing edge of inpatient psychiatry.     

A study of the inpatient service of a Nigerian psychiatric hospital

Psychiatric hospitals and psychiatric units of teaching hospitals are gradually replacing the “civil asylums” in prisons, for the care of mentally ill patients in Nigeria.According to Boroffka,¹ 15 of such asylums still exist in addition to eight psychiatric hospitals and four psychiatric units situated in teaching hospitals. The phasing out of these asylums is due partly to the availability of more effective treatment for mental disorders and increasing numbers of psychiatrists in the country.Apart from Anumonye² and Jegede and Adaranijo,³ who have described the pattern of psychiatric practice in a psychiatric unit of a teaching hospital with four beds, no comprehensive information exists on the types of psychiatric patients requiring admission, either for a long- or a short-term stay and the management pattern and the relationship of such management to the underlying psychiatric illness. The present study is a preliminary report of a long-term longitudinal study, which aims at investigating both of the above problems, using the inpatients of a large psychiatric hospital.     

The effects of a psychiatric liaison program on the utilization of psychiatric consultations: an evaluation by chart audit.

The effects of a psychiatric liaison program were studied by a chart audit examination of psychiatric consultations on a medical service. A comparison of the full liaison ward with the other wards revealed significant differences in the use of emergency consultation and psychiatric follow-up treatment. The results indicated improved psychologic management of medical patients on wards with intense liaison involvement but no measurable change in attitude toward the psychiatrist. Evaluation methodology and implications of the results are discussed.