The consultation process and its effects on therapeutic outcome

There is little in the literature dealing with consultation from the point of view of patient care. Since one of the major elements in the definition of family practice deals with the synthesizing role and the responsiblity of the family physician to help guide patients through the complex health-care system, it is entirely appropriate to take a critical look at the consultation process. This will allow more appropriate teaching of the family practice resident, so that he may use consultation and referral in a more productive manner in the future. This paper defines and discusses six common problems in the consultation process. Classification of pitfalls in the consutative process can serve as a starting point from which a more critical and systematic study of the consultation can be made, to the end of making the consultant and the referring physician both more skilled and more comfortable with their coordinated tasks.