Abstract
This review article focuses on how the therapeutic relationship is central to clinician-client/patient relationships in psychiatry as well as other medical and psychotherapeutic encounters. Crucial to this relationship is the alliance formed between the caregiver and the person who seeks their care. The threats to the therapeutic alliance in psychiatry are discussed as is the importance of facing them. How mindfulness enables clinicians to build such bonds and foster well-being in themselves and in those they treat is examined in the context of quantitative and qualitative studies.
Highlights
Mindful medical practice and the therapeutic alliance Patricia Lynn Dobkin, Ricardo J
It is based on a secure and empathic affective bond which can promote positive outcomes[1]. It is the central component of psychotherapies, either as the primary vehicle of change – for instance, in psychodynamic psychotherapies – or by enhancing techniques taught in cognitive-behavioural therapies
In the context of healthcare, the therapeutic alliance is embedded within the broader concept of a therapeutic relationship
Summary
The therapeutic alliance is a collaborative relationship formed between therapist and patient/client It is based on a secure and empathic affective bond which can promote positive outcomes[1]. In the context of healthcare, the therapeutic alliance is embedded within the broader concept of a therapeutic relationship It can take various forms (e.g. in face-to-face contact and telephone calls), be formed in different settings (e.g. in and outpatient services), and may last between a few minutes to decades[2]. Siegel describes it under the rubric of attunement: a two-way relational process in which one person focuses on the inner world of the other, and the recipient of this attention feels understood, connected and felt. He underscores that self-attunement aids this process[3]
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