2013 Volume 25 Issue 1 Pages 16-22
To clarify the effect of the consultation liaison psychiatry team (CLPT), we conducted a focus group interview with five members of the CLPT including one psychiatrist, two registered psychiatric nurses, clinical psychologist, and psychiatric social worker. The interview was audio taped, transcribed, and the results summarized. Three categories were created for the themes that emerged: <Effectiveness for the CLPT>, <Effectiveness for general hospital ward staff>, and <Improvement in quality of medical care>. Subthemes emerged from each of three themes, as described below. 1. <Effectiveness for the CLPT> → <Alleviating emotional strain>, <Improved communication with hospital ward staff> 2. <Alleviating emotional strain> → <Sense of Belonging>, <Improved motivation>, <Greater objectivity> 3. <Improved communication with hospital ward staff> → <Alleviated anxiety in addressing ward staff>, <Smoother negotiation with ward staff>, <Ward staff had better understanding of role of psychiatry> 4. <Effectiveness for general hospital ward staff> → <Sense of relief>, <Improvement in ability to manage clinical problems> 5. <Improvement in quality of medical care> → <Faster response to consultation request>, <Able to perform multiple assessments>, <Greater guarantee of quality> <Effectiveness for the CLPT> seemed to promote increased liaison consultation activity that resulted in other positive effects. In this way, each subsequent effect did not work alone, but synergistically.
