You do not currently have permission to view the full text for this document. Please sign in to an account with an active subscription or contact support.
The editors' sound premise of Emotional Disorders in Physically Ill Patients is that all disease is psychosomatic. They believe that biological dysfunction effects psychological and social functioning, and that adverse psychological and social changes effect biological functioning. Their collection of essays documents this belief.
Roessler and Decker address their book to all professional health care providers, but primarily to physicians. Psychiatrists and psychotherapists with limited consultation/liaison experience should find this book of considerable interest and value. The book contains a sampling of the more common cases confronted by the consultation/liaison psychiatrist. The chapters fall into three groupings: common problems in primary care, emotional problems in surgical patients, and problems of chronic illness.
In the section concerned with the common problems in primary care, Frederick G. Guggenheim's lead chapter is titled: “Crises in Medical Care.” Through the use of helpful case histories, the author stresses the importance of the renewed hope that a patient can develop from interaction with a therapist. The therapist helps the patient find hope by providing structure, advice, support, relief of guilt, and helpful manipulation of the environment. The recommendations offered are succinct and wise. Roessler and Gregory Graham follow with an instructive case illustration relating to the recognition and care of Organic Brain Syndrome Patients. Chris E. Sermas provides a useful and comprehensive review of the psychopharmacological treatment of physically ill patients. This chapter is especially concerned with the side effects of medications. Timothy E. Bayer writes about “Patients with Pain.” His chapter illustrates the complexity of this subject and the ambiguities and challenges that confront the physician. “Pain,” he writes, “is a phenomenon that is influenced and determined by biological, psychological, and social variables that interact with each othe