Participation in teaching is good therapy for patients with mental disorders

Patients with common mental disorders benefit from participation in undergraduate teaching in primary care. Walters and colleagues (p 740) surveyed patients and conducted in depth interviews with patients, general practitioner tutors, and students involved in undergraduate psychiatry teaching in primary care. Over 90% of the patients reported satisfaction with teaching encounters. The interviews revealed specific therapeutic benefits for patients, such as increased self esteem and empowerment, improved understanding of their feelings, and new insights into their problems. Patients valued the time to talk and reflect, and some patients and doctors reported a stronger doctor-patient relationship. For a few patients participation caused some distress, which should be evaluated in a larger sample.

(Credit: PHANIE/REX)

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Relevant Article

Teaching as therapy: cross sectional and qualitative evaluation of patients' experiences of undergraduate psychiatry teaching in the community

Kate Walters, Marta Buszewicz, Jill Russell, and Charlotte Humphrey
BMJ 2003 326: 740. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]