Is a psychotherapeutic approach possible in primary health care?

The development of valid psychotherapeutic approaches, adapted to the characteristics of the consultation in primary care, is a subject in constant development. In order to work effectively in a model of psychotherapy adjusted to primary care, the health practitioner (psychiatrist, psychologist, or family physician) must constantly focus on finding the most efficient way to treat the patient, in a short period of time, and with different nuances from those usually used in secondary care: That is, an eclectic and pragmatic approach to dealing with the problems that patients bring to consultation, and a practical and direct way of assisting them, in order to achieve therapeutic goals. To try to answer the question of whether it is possible to perform psychotherapeutic approaches in primary health care, this brief analysis presents a reflection on the issue and a case example.