ASPECTS OF DOCTOR – DEPRESSIVE PATIENT RELATIONSHIP
Abstract:
This study addresses the doctor-depressive patient relationship from the perspective of the process peculiarities pertaining to asking for and receiving medical help. The purpose of this study is to deeply explore the process of requesting and receiving medical aid in dealing with depression, in order to identify its improvement opportunities. The test group consists of 20 patients diagnosed with depression and the examination method is the interpretative phenomenological analysis. Results indicate the fact that depressive individuals‟ decision to seek professional help appears during the second evaluation (Lazarus and Folkman 1984), when they evaluate their available resources and when they find that they neither possess them nor are able to longer cope with the situation. Medical aid is perceived to be useful or less useful primarily based on the personal level of support and the quality of the doctor-patient relationship. The quality of the relationship depends on the reception of the three types of medical aid: emotional, informational and instrumental support.
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