[The role of non-pharmaceutical and non-technical therapeutic interventions in patient care]

A clear definition of the broad field of non-pharmaceutical and non-technical therapeutic interventions in patient care does not exist, making the discussion more difficult. Here, the relationship between patient and professional, contextual factors, and the influence of the patient play a more prominent role than with drug therapy and technical interventions. The vast majority of non-pharmaceutical and non-technical procedures consist of complex and nearly always communication-based interventions. It is difficult to describe their role, since reliable data on criteria like frequency, time required, costs, quality, number of professionals involved and the importance for the patient are sparse. These therapeutic interventions may well form the core and biggest part of therapy in patient care. (As supplied by publisher).