ABSTRACT

It is widely agreed that about a third of all patients who go to their family doctor have primarily emotional problems. About half of these will have a recognizable psychiatric condition, with two-thirds of them having unmet needs. But only one in twenty is referred to a psychiatrist (Boardman, Henshaw, & Willmott, 2004). A still smaller proportion will be referred on for formal psychotherapy in the National Health Service (NHS). However, psychotherapy at varying levels will be appropriate for some patients at each of these stages. We will discuss these different levels and types of psychotherapy in further detail in Part II. The term `psychotherapy' is used in both general and special ways; it includes forms of treatment for emotional and psychiatric disorders that rely on talking and the relationship with the therapist, by contrast to physical methods of treatment (such as drugs and electroconvulsive treatment).