Accuracy of referring psychiatric diagnosis

The author examined the accuracy of the initial psychiatric diagnosis of primary medical providers requesting psychiatric consultation in a medical inpatient setting in a university hospital.

A retrospective review of 217 consecutive psychiatric consultations was conducted in which the initial diagnostic impression of primary medical providers was compared with the final psychiatric diagnosis.

The accuracy of psychiatric diagnosis was the highest for cognitive disorders 60%, followed by depression 50% and anxiety disorders 46%, whereas the accuracy of diagnosing psychosis was 0%.

Thus, the accuracy of initial diagnoses made by primary medical providers is quite variable. Factors affecting these results are discussed.