Psychiatrists omit information from letters when they know patients will be sent copies

EDITOR—From April 2004 patients will receive copies of all correspondence between clinicians working in the NHS as a matter of course. 1 2 Previous research supports the view reported in Eaton's news item that patients appreciate this practice3^–5; however, the way its national introduction will affect doctors' work is much less clear. We audited how psychiatrists' practice is affected when letters are to be copied to patients.

All 76 new patients who attended two general psychiatry outpatient clinics (one rural, one inner city) from January 2002 to July 2002 were included in the pilot study, as were all eight psychiatrists who worked in these clinics during this time. After the assessment patients were sent a copy of the psychiatrist's letter to the general practitioner and asked to complete a short questionnaire on their evaluation of the letter. …