Royal college of general practitioners position statement: mental health and primary care.

Abstract

No less than those with physical illnesses, peoplesuffering mental distress need and deserve the skilledsupportandadvocacyoftheirdoctors.Someformsofmental illness – schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, severedepression–rightlyhaveahighprofilebecauseoftheirpotential for catastrophe. For these conditions, theprinciplesofgoodcarearerelatively clearand, forthemost part, relatively well implemented.But, like the proverbial iceberg, the greater mass ofhuman mental pain is hidden below the diagnosticwaterline. Countless lives are chronically blighted byexperiences, ungraced by formal psychiatric labels, suchas sadness; worry; unfairness; hostility; loneliness;frustration; guilt; disappointment; low self esteem;problem drinking; and anti-social behaviour.Does such a catalogue of anguish fall within theremit of primary care? Yes of course it does. If caringfor individuals means anything at all, it means doingourbesttohelpthemthroughwhatevercircumstancesputtheirwell-beinginjeopardy.Asyouwillsee,thereis much more that we can do, at every level of inter-vention, than we perhaps give ourselves credit for.Thiswide-rangingstatementremindsushowmuchitmatters, and how much informed and focused actionwe can take if we apply ourselves.Roger NeighbourPresidentRoyal College of General PractitionersNovember 2005