[Barriers and need for support in the primary care of depressive patients]

The aim of the study was to record the difficulties and barriers in the management of depressive patients faced by primary care physicians, their self-reported competence and need for support. In this study a questionnaire was sent out to 960 physicians, of whom 180 replied (response rate: 19%). This sample matches the total sample in essential dimensions such as age, sex and special field. From the results retrieved it can be concluded that apart from organisational structural factors the greatest barriers in the treatment of depressive patients are created by the patients' behaviour, i.e. mainly scepticism and reluctance towards treatment. The physicians rated their own competence in treating depression highly, especially concerning diagnostics and primary care. Accordingly, physicians reported they required support in more specific areas (mainly in the management of suicidality). The results are discussed with respect to their implications for professional development programs. Two central aspects were identified: a) the development of practice-oriented measures that can be used to improve guideline-based health care and b) the explicit involvement of patients into treatment processes.