The attitudes of medical inpatients toward psychiatric consultation: a re-examination.
OBJECTIVE
Several surveys from twenty to thirty years ago demonstrated that approximately 80 percent of patients were readily accepting of psychiatric consultation. The aim of this study was to re-examine whether medical inpatient attitudes toward psychiatric consultation have changed in the past twenty-five years and whether the type of psychiatric disorder affects the attitude toward consultation.


METHODS
Forty-eight medical inpatients seen in psychiatric consultation consented to answering a questionnaire pre- and post-consultation to assess their attitudes to this intervention. Chi-square and t-tests were used to determine statistically significant differences between the "before" and "after" consultation groups.


RESULTS
Eight-one percent stated they would be moderately, to very, agreeable to psychiatric consultation if their primary care doctor felt it was indicted. Sixty-seven percent claimed not to have been informed beforehand that a psychiatric consultation was requested. Only 8 percent of patients were disinterested in having the consultation. Psychiatric diagnosis (primary vs. organic) and the attitude toward psychiatric consultation were not significantly related.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results show little change in attitude over the past twenty-five years and support earlier studies that show medical inpatients are generally accepting of psychiatric consultation, that consultation does not pose a threat to the doctor-patient relationship, and that careful preparation of the patient by the primary care provider can improve patients' attitudes toward the consultation.
Klein
D A
DA
Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx.
Saravay
S M
SM
Pollack
S
S
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009518:New York; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D011570:Psychiatry; D012017:Referral and Consultation