Some patients are more willing to see a behavioral health provider within primary care. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the patients’ perspectives of having access to a psychologist within primary care and to investigate whether mental health stigma affected preferences. In total, 36 patients completed questionnaires after seeing a psychologist in primary care. Patients were satisfied with having a primary care psychologist involved in their care. Most patients were more likely to see the psychologist in primary care and those who preferred this indicated higher levels of mental health stigma. The overarching theme for why patients saw a psychologist in primary care was convenience. Mental health stigma may also have played a role. Results suggest that providing integrated services may reach patients who may not have otherwise sought services in a behavioral health clinic. Findings from this study encourage the continued integration of behavioral health services.

Background: In the past decade, a great deal of research has examined the efficacy and mechanisms of attentional bias modification (ABM), a computerized cognitive training intervention for anxiety and other disorders. However, little research has examined how anxious patients perceive ABM, and it is unclear to what extent perceptions of ABM influence outcome. Aims: To examine patient perceptions of ABM across two studies, using a mixed methods approach. Method: In the first study, participants completed a traditional ABM program and received a hand-out with minimal information about the purpose of the task. In the second study, participants completed an adaptive ABM program and were provided with more extensive rationale and instructions for changing attentional biases. Results: A number of themes emerged from qualitative data related to perceived symptom changes and mechanisms of action, acceptability, early perceptions of the program, barriers/facilitators to engagement, and responses to adaptive features. Moreover, quantitative data suggested that patients’ perceptions of the program predicted symptom reduction as well as change in attentional bias. Conclusions: Our quantitative data suggest that it may be possible to quickly and inexpensively identify some patients who may benefit from current ABM programs, although our qualitative data suggest that ABM needs major modifications before it will be an acceptable and credible treatment more broadly. Although the current study was limited by sample size and design features of the parent trials from which these data originated, our findings may be useful for guiding hypotheses in future studies examining patient perceptions towards ABM.

Change affects all areas of healthcare organizations and none more so than each aspect of the oncology ward, beginning with the patient's room. It is there that the issues faced by the major players in healing environments – administrator, caregiver, family member, and, most importantly, the patient – come sharply into focus. Hospitals are building new facilities or renovating old ones in order to adapt to new environmental demands of patient care and security. Driven by ethical and professional responsibility, the oncological team headed by Professor Hellmut Samonigg of Graz Medical University Graz pursued a vision of designing a model oncology ward unique in Europe. Friedensreich Hundertwasser, the world-famous artist, was the creative force behind the design. The oncology ward became a place of healing, permeated with a colorful sense of life and harmonious holistic care. The successful outcome was confirmed by the extraordinarily positive feedback by patients, families, and healthcare staff.

This paper is concerned with how roles within one group general practice are perceived to have been affected by the introduction of the nurse practitioner into the primary health care team (PHCT) for a 2-year pilot period. The data presented are from data elicited during a single round of interviews with patients ( n = 30) and two rounds of interviews with all medical and nursing staff within the primary health care team on two occasions (40 interviews). The patient interviews were undertaken in the first year of the study, and interviews with staff were undertaken within 6 months of the commencement of the study and during the final 6 months. The overall aim was to evaluate the feasibility of the role and its possible future application to other primary health care settings. This paper will discuss the findings of that aspect of the study relating to the effects on role boundaries between doctors and nurses, and between nurse practitioner and nurses, midwives and health visitors in the practice as perceived by the patients, nurses and doctors involved. The nurse practitioner in this particular practice was a very experienced practice nurse with a wide range of knowledge and skills which she brought to the nurse practitioner role. This, together with well-organized teaching and supervision in the practice setting and a structured programme of formal education, resulted in a highly effective practitioner who was generally seen to have blurred the boundary lines between medical and nursing roles.