THE PERCEPTION AND ATTITUDE OF PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIANS ABOUT PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS AND THEIR MANAGEMENT

Objective: Present study was aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude of general practitioners about psychiatric disorders.Materia! and Methods: 4 structured questionnaire adopted from that of Morgan and Killoughry was distributed among all the general practitioners working in Bannu district of Frontier Province.The participants were requested to fill the questionnaire anonymously and return it to the investigatorResults: Qne hundred general practitioners of the total 115, responded to the request. Among them 86% were male. Ninety-three percent showed sensitivity to the importance of psychological factors in the cause and outcome of physical disorders, but only 56% reported frequent or occasional use of antidepressants for their patients. Thirty-six percent of the general practitioners were of the view that patients dislike psychiatric referrals, while 20% thought that psychiatric treatment is usually ineffective.C (inclusion: Doctors working in primary care setting are aware of the psychological needs of their physically HI patients. They are interested to take advice but at the same time want to manage the mentally ill in their own setup.