[Management of depressed patients by family physicians. Questionnaire study in Hamburg]

With the aid of a questionnaire specially developed for the purpose, general practitioners were questioned about their management of depressed patients attending their offices. A number of physician-related aspects that might have been the cause of the differences in prevalence and management of the patients, were investigated.

Estimations on the part of the physicians that patients with psychological problems accounted for some 20% of their total case load were in agreement with figures obtained from other studies. Those specifically with depression accounted for 8.6%. The practitioners' assessment of their own competence in caring for depressed patients, and their cooperation with other institutions play a key role in the incidence of the diagnosis and the nature of medical treatment--by means of drugs, psychotherapy, referral, yes or no. The results obtained suggest a need to improve the psychiatric training of general practitioners and for closer cooperation with neurologists, psychologists, and hospitals.