Brief psychotherapy in family practice.

A large number of patients with psychosocial or psychiatric disorders present to family physicians, and the family physician needs a model of psychotherapy with which to cope with their problems. A model of brief psychotherapy is presented which is time limited, goal directed and easy to learn. It consists of four facets drawn from established areas of psychotherapy: characteristics of the therapist; characteristics of the patient; Eriksonian developmental stages; and the process of therapy as described by Carkhuff. These facets fit together in a way which is useful to the family physician in managing those patient problems for which brief psychotherapy is indicated.