To the Editor: We strongly agree with the reasons to improve training in nonpsychiatric medicine for psychiatrists that were outlined in Wrights (1) commentary in the May-June issue. This training is particularly important because of the high numbers of comorbid general medical illnesses that often go undetected and untreated (2, 3). These illnesses are often "hidden" or unrecognized and mistakenly attributed to psychological problems. In fact, several studies have indicated that undiagnosed medical illnesses may either directly cause or exacerbate psychiatric disorders (4–6). Moreover, conservative estimates suggest that at least 10% of all psychiatric illness may have general medical sources (7, 8). Failure to recognize psychologically masked general medical illness results in a clinical assessment that is inaccurate and a treatment plan that is both misguided and potentially harmful to the patient. One investigation (9) found that mental health providers with no medical training demonstrated substantially less knowledge of common medical illnesses that masquerade as psychological problems than did medically trained providers. However, no studies have specifically compared the ability of psychiatrists with that of physicians in other medical specialties to recognize masked general medical illness in patients presenting with what appears to be primarily a mental health
Comparing Psychiatrists' and Primary Care Physicians' Knowledge of Nonpsychiatric Medicine
Abstract
To the Editor: We strongly agree with the reasons to improve training in nonpsychiatric medicine for psychiatrists that were outlined in Wrights (1) commentary in the May-June issue. This training is particularly important because of the high numbers of comorbid general medical illnesses that often go undetected and untreated (2, 3). These illnesses are often "hidden" or unrecognized and mistakenly attributed to psychological problems. In fact, several studies have indicated that undiagnosed medical illnesses may either directly cause or exacerbate psychiatric disorders (4–6). Moreover, conservative estimates suggest that at least 10% of all psychiatric illness may have general medical sources (7, 8). Failure to recognize psychologically masked general medical illness results in a clinical assessment that is inaccurate and a treatment plan that is both misguided and potentially harmful to the patient. One investigation (9) found that mental health providers with no medical training demonstrated substantially less knowledge of common medical illnesses that masquerade as psychological problems than did medically trained providers. However, no studies have specifically compared the ability of psychiatrists with that of physicians in other medical specialties to recognize masked general medical illness in patients presenting with what appears to be primarily a mental health
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Comparing Psychiatrists' and Primary Care Physicians' Knowledge of Nonpsychiatric Medicine
Grace, Glenn D.; Christensen, Richard C.
Follow Academic Psychiatry
, Volume 34 (1): 80
American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc (Journal) – Jan 1, 2010
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