Barriers to improving treatment
Henningsen P., Fazekas C., Sharpe M.
© Cambridge University Press 2011. If we are to improve care for patients with bodily distress syndromes, the barriers that currently stand in the way of effective management must be addressed. Many of these barriers are simple but nonetheless fundamental. In this chapter we will consider these barriers, first as problems in the context in which patient care is provided (terminology and understanding; policy planning and organisation), then as problems in the individual doctor–patient encounter (the patient’s role, the doctor’s role and the doctor–patient relationship) that takes place within that context.