A brief history of psychotherapy in the British National Health Service: how can psychotherapists influence psychiatry?

This outline sketch of the history of psychotherapy in the NHS was an introduction to a half-day session on “Psychotherapy in the Health Service”. It is argued that the history of psychotherapy in the NHS cannot be seen in perspective, both before the inception of the NHS as well as since, and without considering psychotherapy outside the NHS as well as within, since the links between the two are vital in many areas. The demand for psychotherapy outside the NHS is probably strong partly because of the poor provision within.