The impact of psychological assistance in Italian Primary Care: data collected from 2016 to 2018 in the district of Bologna

Abstract

It is common for a general practitioner to meet patients who suffer from mental disorders such as depression or anxiety in the context of Primary Care (Alexander et al., 2008; Anthony et al., 2010; Consensus ISS, 2022; Regier et al. 1978, 1993; Goldberg Goodyer, 2005; Ustün Sartorius, 1995; WHO, 2016). This study reports data about clinical activity during the period 2016-2018 regarding the psychological assistance provided by the project “Lo psicologo nella Casa della Salute” in the Italian city of Bologna (Aru et al., 2019). The “Casa della Salute” (CdS) is a territorial health care outpatient facility that aims to offer services of Primary Care to the general population of a specific district. Moreover, CdS is a starting point for the collaboration between the Mental Health Department (MHD) and the Primary Care Department (PCD). Previous experiences about psychologist in Primary Care (Liuzzi, 2010; Solano, 2009) highlighted: (1) positive increase of therapeutic outcomes through improvement of appropriate access to psychological care and (2) active role of psychologist in promoting communication between different professionals involved in mental health care. In the 2016-2018 period, different interventions have been organized: (1) orientation towards the network of Health Services, (2) psychological interventions to support the activity of the health personnel of the CdS, (3) low intensity psychological intervention (6-8 session), (4) psychotherapy intervention (15-20 session). Statistical analyses have been conducted on a sample of 613 patients who were referred to the psychologist of the CdS. The results indicates that the “Lo psicologo nella Casa della Salute” proposes an effective model of integrated health care.

Keywords

• psychological assistance
• primary care
• mental health
• integrated care
• general practitioners.