title: The medical management of the paranoid patient.
abstract: Patients who are medically ill and distrustful of their care-providers are unfortunately a fact of life for most physicians. Medical management of such patients can be a frustrating experience because their suspiciousness is usually heightened by the stress of medical illness. Most often the patient's mistrust covers profound feelings of personal inadequacy and is a defense against feared passivity. Understanding of basic paranoid thought processes combined with knowledge of practical management techniques will lead to increased confidence and effectiveness when interacting with these difficult patients.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009769:Object Attachment; D010259:Paranoid Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D011385:Projection; D011574:Psychoanalytic Theory; D011602:Psychophysiologic Disorders / Q000523:psychology