LIAISON PSYCHIATRY - A NEW CLINICAL SUBSPECIALTY?

The term "liaison psychiatry" expresses, on the one hand, the act of consultation, the psychiatric intervention intended for the patient and, on the other hand, it emphasizes the assistance given to the physicians and the therapeutic team treating the patients. Liaison psychiatry aims to become a new subspecialty of psychiatry whose purpose is to study and manage mental disorders in patients treated by other medical disciplines. The activities of liaison psychiatry involve: initial focus on the consultation of the admitted patient, extensive services with multidisciplinary personnel, offers for various hospital activities (e.g. emergency care) and specialties (e.g. obstetrics and oncology), services for specific medical problems requiring collaborative planning, training and the supervision of the medical team, liaison and consultation by the liaison team, an increased interest in the treatment of functional symptoms, activities for discharged patients, connections with primary care, training and supervision for clinical medical and surgical teams. Recent reviews of the literature suggest that liaison psychiatry will require determination and political abilities if it is to assume the role it plays in multidisciplinary medical care approaches.