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THE ROLE OF THE PSYCHIATRIST IN A REHABILITATION UNIT *
Author(s) -
Hughson B. J.,
Maddison D. C.
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1974.tb93373.x
Subject(s) - rehabilitation , unit (ring theory) , teamwork , mental health , psychiatry , population , psychology , medicine , nursing , physical therapy , political science , law , mathematics education , environmental health
There are significant levels of psychological disturbance in a rehabilitation patient population. The amount of psychiatric consultation assistance available Is always very limited, and nowhere approaches the possibility of providing separate treatment for each individual in need. In any event, this kind of personal treatment is not always necessary and may even be undesirable; the patient's primary therapists are in a position to help him with most of the complicating psychological issues. Although the psychiatrist will continue to provide individual help to occasional patients with major discrete psychiatric illness, his greatest potential use is in assisting the rehabilitationists in the management of their own patients, using the technique of mental health consultation. Depending on local circumstances, he may also be able to play a part in facilitating effective teamwork. There are problems in initiating this approach, but they are not Insuperable.