Resumen de Collaborative family health care in an hospital setting: A pilot study on physicians and therapists¿ perceptions

M. Graça Pereira, Thomas Edward Smith

• Although in recent years, the biopsychosocial approach has been emphasized in the practice of family medicine, how physicians and therapist interact and in particular the role of the family therapist in medical settings has been confusing. This study describes a qualitative study that focused on the understanding of what perceptions influence the collaborative approach or the parameters of family systems medicine, how physicians and therapists perceive their role in the process of collaboration and finally how they characterize the collaborative health care approach. For that purpose, an ethnographic methodology was selected. The domain analysis specified by Spreadleys¿s DRS model revealed four categories that were important in physicians and therapists¿ perceptions of the definition of a collaborative approach: 1) collaboration, 2) practice of a family systems medicine, 3) referral, 4) training, and 5) roles. Although in some of these domains family physicians and family therapists differ they seem pretty clear regarding the importance of the biopsychosocial model and interdisciplinary collaboration. Implications for future research and towards the practice and the operationalisation of the collaborative approach are emphasized.

  Keywords: Family systems medicine. Collaborative approach. Family practice. Family therapy. Qualitative study.