[Psychotherapy in the education and practice of general practitioners and specialists in the USSR]

For about three years psychotherapy has been introduced as a must for any medical student in the USSR. The author describes the policies behind this important step, its implementation, and first effects in detail. Psychotherapeutical services for the hospitalized, for crisis intervention, ambulant teams, its significance for surgery, and the delivery of psychotherapeutical short term programs in spas are described. The significance of psychotherapeutical work as a link between the specialized medical branches is stressed.