- Section 1 The Subject Matter of and Approach to Psychiatry
- 1.3 Psychiatry as a worldwide public health problem
- 1.4 The history of psychiatry as a medical specialty
- 1.5 Ethics and values
- 1.6 The psychiatrist as a manager
- 1.7 Descriptive phenomenology
- 1.8 Assessment
- 1.9 Diagnosis and classification
- 1.10 From science to practice
- Section 2 The Scientific Basis of Psychiatric Aetiology
- 2.3 The contribution of neurosciences
- 2.4 The contribution of genetics
- 2.5 The contribution of psychological science
- 2.6 The contribution of social sciences
- 2.7 The contribution of epidemiology to psychiatric aetiology
- Section 3 Psychodynamic Contributions to Psychiatry
- Section 4 Clinical Syndromes of Adult Psychiatry
- 4.4 Persistent delusional symptoms and disorders
- 4.5 Mood disorders
- 4.6 Stress-related and adjustment disorders
- 4.7 Anxiety disorders
- Section 5 Psychiatry and Medicine
- 5.1 Mind–body dualism, psychiatry, and medicine
- 5.2 Somatoform disorders and other causes of medically unexplained symptoms
- 5.3 Medical and surgical conditions and treatments associated with psychiatric disorders
- 5.4 Obstetric and gynaecological conditions associated with psychiatric disorder
- 5.5 Management of psychiatric disorders in medically ill patients, including emergencies
- 5.6 Health psychology
- 5.7 The organization of psychiatric services for general hospital departments
- Section 6 Treatment Methods in Psychiatry
- 6.2 Somatic treatments
- Section 7 Social Psychiatry and Service Provision
- Section 8 The Psychiatry of Old Age
- Section 9 Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
(p. 989) Mind–body dualism, psychiatry, and medicine
- Chapter:
- (p. 989) Mind–body dualism, psychiatry, and medicine
- Author(s):
Michael Sharpe
and Jane Walker
- DOI:
- 10.1093/med/9780199696758.003.0126
Patients usually attend doctors because they are concerned about symptoms. When these symptoms are associated with persistent distress or disability we refer to the patient as having an illness. When assessing the patient's illness the doctor aims to make a diagnosis, on the basis of which management can be planned and prognosis made. The diagnoses available to doctors are conventionally defined as either ‘medical’ or ‘psychiatric’. This division of illness into two types is such an accepted feature of current medical practice that we tend to take it for granted. But is it really the best way to think about patients’ illnesses and to plan their care? In order to answer this question we will examine what is meant by ‘medical’ and ‘psychiatric’ diagnoses and the assumptions underpinning this division. The disadvantages of this dualistic approach will be considered and solutions proposed.
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- Section 1 The Subject Matter of and Approach to Psychiatry
- 1.3 Psychiatry as a worldwide public health problem
- 1.4 The history of psychiatry as a medical specialty
- 1.5 Ethics and values
- 1.6 The psychiatrist as a manager
- 1.7 Descriptive phenomenology
- 1.8 Assessment
- 1.9 Diagnosis and classification
- 1.10 From science to practice
- Section 2 The Scientific Basis of Psychiatric Aetiology
- 2.3 The contribution of neurosciences
- 2.4 The contribution of genetics
- 2.5 The contribution of psychological science
- 2.6 The contribution of social sciences
- 2.7 The contribution of epidemiology to psychiatric aetiology
- Section 3 Psychodynamic Contributions to Psychiatry
- Section 4 Clinical Syndromes of Adult Psychiatry
- 4.4 Persistent delusional symptoms and disorders
- 4.5 Mood disorders
- 4.6 Stress-related and adjustment disorders
- 4.7 Anxiety disorders
- Section 5 Psychiatry and Medicine
- 5.1 Mind–body dualism, psychiatry, and medicine
- 5.2 Somatoform disorders and other causes of medically unexplained symptoms
- 5.3 Medical and surgical conditions and treatments associated with psychiatric disorders
- 5.4 Obstetric and gynaecological conditions associated with psychiatric disorder
- 5.5 Management of psychiatric disorders in medically ill patients, including emergencies
- 5.6 Health psychology
- 5.7 The organization of psychiatric services for general hospital departments
- Section 6 Treatment Methods in Psychiatry
- 6.2 Somatic treatments
- Section 7 Social Psychiatry and Service Provision
- Section 8 The Psychiatry of Old Age
- Section 9 Child and Adolescent Psychiatry