[Correlation between inpatient and ambulatory psychotherapy from the viewpoint of the family physician].

Very often the position of the family doctor is being reduced to a mere "doorkeeper" (a person who just lets the patients in and out). He should, however, be the first person being addressed also by patients with psychic and psychosomatic problems, which requires a fundamental education in psychosomatic or psychotherapeutic medicine. Compared to specialists or doctors working in hospitals the advantage of a family doctor is that the patients already trust him, and, furthermore, he is familiar with the family background. He functions as interpreter of the patients' complaints, and--given a certain indication--he combines medication and psychotherapy, which are the two essential parts of psychotherapy being carried out by a doctor. If the symptoms exceed his competence, he must send the patient to a specialist who can cope with his problems. His personal advice is essential in such a case. After having been released from stationary medical treatment, the patient should have the possibility to consult his family doctor again for the sake of continuous medical treatment. A successful combination of stationary and out-patient psychotherapy can be negatively influenced by the following facts: devaluation of the family doctor's competence by specialists or offending of the family doctor's feelings of self-reliance because of a supposed failure.