Biomedical subjects

G Strathdee

Publications and source records attributed to G Strathdee.

49 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

PubMed1991

Transfer between psychiatric hospitals: symptom, social function and patient attitude changes in long-term patients.

This study followed up a ward group of long-term, mainly schizophrenic patients after transfer from Bexley Hospital, a large institution in South East London, to small purpose built rehabilitation unit in a distant hospital, and used a matched control group of patients remaining in Bexley Hospital for comparison. There was no pattern of symptomatic improvement or deterioration with time in either group, but social functioning and behaviour did improve in those transferred. The patients transferred were well informed about the process, became more favourable about the medical advice offered to them but remained sure, as did patients in the control group, that they wanted to leave hospital eventually. We suggest that the successful transfer of patients between hospitals must involve clear information to prepare patients and relatives, the consent of patients, staff enthusiasm, the provision of a full range of services after transfer, including occupational therapy, and staff continuity.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Psychiatric clinics in primary care. The effect on general practitioner referral patterns.

A consecutive series of 176 referrals from family doctors to psychiatrists conducting their outpatient clinics im primary care was studied. The presence of psychological symptoms was the stated reason for referral in only half of the patients, although chronic illnesses and the psychotic disorders were well represented. Female sex, attending the GP with physical ill-health and the absence of personality disorder were influential but unacknowledged factors in the referral process. The implications of these findings for the development of community psychiatric services and the relationship between primary and secondary care is discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

A standardized assessment of patients referred to primary care and hospital psychiatric clinics.

General practice based psychiatric clinics have increased in number in recent years. Case-note and case-register data examining the nature of the psychiatric disorder of the patients seen in this setting have shown contradictory findings. In this study comparison of 113 patients referred to primary care and hospital out-patient clinics is made using standardized clinical and social measures. Our results show that both groups had similar degrees of physical and social dysfunction and comparable levels of psychiatric morbidity. However, in the primary care population there were more women, and schizophreniform psychoses predominated. In the hospital sample affective illnesses and personality disorders were more common. The majority of patients preferred to consult in the primary care setting.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

Delivery of psychiatric care.

This paper proposes criteria essential for the effective delivery of psychiatric care and briefly reviews the extent to which they are fulfilled by current services. An audit study is described where district general practitioners were asked to evaluate the extent to which their local psychiatric services met their needs and those of their patients. The implications for the development of community psychiatric services is discussed.

Communication↗

PubMed1988

Psychiatrists in primary care: the general practitioner viewpoint.

Within the past few decades, a growing number of psychiatrists in the UK have moved their outpatient clinics out of their hospital bases and have established liaison-attachment clinics in primary care settings within their catchment areas. This study reports the views of the senior general practitioners who have access to such clinics in their practices. The majority described a significant alteration in the nature of their relationships with the specialists. This, together with the opportunity for general practitioners to become involved in integrated management approaches, is believed to significantly improve continuity of patient care.

Community Psychiatry↗

PubMed1988

Patient access to psychiatric records: the patients' view.

The passing of legislation relating to subject access to personal health data has been accompanied by concern about the possible harmful effects of this development on patients. Despite the lack of substantive evidence psychiatric patients have been regarded as the group most at risk. This study investigates the subjective views of patients on access to records on two psychiatric wards.

Adult↗

PubMed1988

A comparison of referrals to primary-care and hospital out-patient clinics.

All referrals from two general practices to psychiatrists in hospital and primary-care out-patient clinics were examined. Women in all diagnostic groups were preferentially referred to the primary-care clinics, which provided especially for psychotic and chronic illnesses, and at which attendance rates on first and subsequent appointments were substantially higher than at the hospital clinics. The hospital crisis-intervention clinic dealt particularly with acute psychosis and personality disorder. Patients referred to the traditional hospital out-patient service were those with the less common neuroses and personality disorder. These results are reviewed in the context of the criticism that psychiatric clinics in primary care serve only the "worried well".

Adult↗

PubMed1988

Managing the difficult patient: practical suggestions from a study day.

A study day for general practitioners was arranged on the subject of managing the difficult patient. Participants were asked to supply written details of their most difficult patient and the problems they associated with him or her. The issues raised were addressed in a number of formal presentations and formed the basis for discussion in workshops. This paper focuses on the underlying similarities between the patients and discusses a practical approach to their management.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1987

Primary care-psychiatry interaction: a British perspective.

Three models of interaction between primary care and psychiatry in the British National Health Service are presented. Although the first two are traditional and well recognized, the third, the liaison-attachment model, is an innovation of the last decade. Two studies are described that outline the extent and nature of this form of working collaboration between specialists and generalists. Clinical, service, and educational implications are discussed in the context of the British primary care structure.

Delivery of Health Care↗

PubMed1984