A Balint seminar in the family practice residency setting

British psychoanalyst Michael Balint made important theoretical and pragmatic contributions to family practice, through the seminars of general practitioners he led at the Tavistock Clinic. A weekly Balint seminar, modeled on the Tavistock groups, was held in a family practice residency. The group of second and third year residents, co-led by a behavioral scientist and a family practice faculty member, met for 12 weeks and then re-evaluated topics and discussion format. Issues covered included physician-patient relationships, ethical dilemmas, group therapy concerns, and coping with clinic pressures. Objective evaluation of these seminars, where the goal is attitudinal rather than behavioral change, presents some difficulty. The conclusion is that residents benefited from the seminar, and that some aspects of psychoanalytic theory and technique are applicable to the teaching of behavioral science in family practice residencies.