guide for primary care providers

TREATING A PERSON LIVING WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA:
A DISCUSSION GUIDE FOR PRIMARY CARE PROVIDERS
by Ken Duckworth, M.D.

This guide has been designed for Practitioners of Family Medicine,
Internal Medicine, Emergency Room Physicians, Nurses, Physician
Assistants, Allied Health Professionals and Trainees.

In general, people trust the knowledge and wisdom of their primary
care doctors and nurses. That trust combined with the fact that psychiatric
conditions often generate somatic symptoms are why physicians, nurses,
physician assistants, and even physician's secretarial staff are often the
first stop for a patient or a patient's family member when seeking information
and guidance about severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia,
schizo-affective disorder, bipolar disorder, depression, or other psychiatric
disorders. Even though as a physician, you may have had incomplete
exposure to people living with major mental illness in your medical school
or nursing training, patients who are dealing with a desperate situation,
either in their own lives or with their loved ones, will turn to you because
you have helped them in the past. It takes great trust for someone to share
the vulnerability and helplessness they may feel in discussing mental illness
with you. When a family like Millie's seeks help, you can be a key resource
for them whatever your level of experience with mental illness. Out of the
Shadow and this discussion guide can provide perspective on this important
and often overlooked area of medical practice and give you some resources
for support and referral that you can pass along to individuals and families
contending with mental illness.