title: Psychiatric liaison consultations of patients without psychiatric illness in a general hospital in Germany: a retrospective analysis.
abstract: The aim of the study was to explore the utilization of consultation-liaison psychiatric (CLP) service among nonpsychiatric patients in a general hospital. A retrospective analysis was conducted on all patients seen by the CLP in 2013. In 66 (5.9 %) of these 1112 consultations, no psychiatric diagnosis could be identified. These cases were analyzed by department of referral, assumed psychiatric symptoms, consensus with the symptoms found by the CLP, and recommended procedures. Assumed depressive symptoms, suicidal ideations and "difficult" behavior were the predominant reasons for CLP referrals. As the results suggest, CLP service was mostly "overprovided" because of uncertainty about the working areas of psychiatrists or overestimation of the severity of symptoms. These findings emphasize the importance to develop more precise guidelines for CLP services and that it could be worth striving for a more profound psychiatric training for nonpsychiatric physicians to achieve an optimal treatment for patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Campus Benjamin Franklin, Hindenburgdamm 30, 12203, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fißler
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Campus Benjamin Franklin, Hindenburgdamm 30, 12203, Berlin, Germany. arnim.quante@charite.de.|Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Friedrich von Bodelschwingh-Klinik, Berlin, Germany. arnim.quante@charite.de.
authors.forename: Arnim
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Quante
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001604:Berlin; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D005260:Female; D006769:Hospitals, General / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D008297:Male; D000069342:Medical Overuse; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009313:National Health Programs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011570:Psychiatry / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Consultation-liaison psychiatry; General hospital; Nonpsychiatric diagnosis; Psychiatric referrals