THE ACCEPTABILITY OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TREATMENT IN PATIENTS WITH MEDICALLY UNEXPLAINED PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS

Patients with unexplained physical symptoms are considered to benefit from psychological treatment, bur are believed to be reluctant to acce pt a referral to a psychiatrist or psychologist. As a part of a treatm ent study, we had the opportunity to examine to what extent somatising patients are willing to accept psychological treatment and how patien ts who are willing to accept it differ from those who are not. The stu dy was introduced to the patient by the attending physician, and the t reatment took place in the general medical outpatient clinic itself. O f 229 patients who had presented with unexplained physical symptoms to a general hospital medical outpatient clinic, 172 (75%) were intervie wed at about three months after their initial visit to the clinic. Fou rty-five (26%) patients appeared to have either improved or recovered from their presenting symptoms, and 26 (15%) were already receiving ps ychiatric or psychological treatment. Of 98 patients eligible for trea tment, 79 (81%) were willing to participate. Compared with the patient s who agreed to take part, the nonparticipants reported lower levels o f physical symptoms and less functional impairment. In conclusion, mos t of the patients who might have benefitted from additional psychologi cal help were willing to accept it. Somatising patients who rejected p sychological treatment were those with the least serious problems.