[Evaluation of psychiatric treatment teams by relatives]

262 members of the Austrian relatives' self-help organisation HPE evaluated their experience with 12 types of psychiatric professionals and judged their satisfaction with the behaviour of these professionals on a 5-point scale corresponding to the Austrian school mark system (1 = the best mark, 5 = the worst mark). Overall the core group of psychiatric professionals-psychiatrists, psychologists and nurses-had the worst rating, while non-core professionals like occupational therapists, social workers and ambulance aids received the highest satisfaction ratings. One possible explanation for the dissatisfaction with the core psychiatric professionals is the unmet needs of the relatives for information, which 93% complained of. It is suggested to teach professionals systematically how to evaluate the needs of relatives and how to communicate with them in a more satisfying way.