When doctors listen: counseling patterns of nonpsychiatrist physicians

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Abstract
Recent work has shown that nonpsychiatrist physicians are surprisingly active in the mental health arena. Using the 2 most recent National Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys (1980-1981), the provision of counseling services by general medical physicians was analyzed in more detail. Office visits involving counseling were a third-again as long as the average office visit (20 min vs. 15) and involved notably more diagnostic and therapeutic services. Although patients who received counseling services from nonpsychiatrist physicians were generally not mentally ill, about 1 in 8 did have a psychiatric diagnosis and might have been better served in the mental health sector.

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