The Patient-Practitioner Relationship

1. Practitioner and patient interpersonal skills –
   Non–verbal communications (e.g. McKinstry and Wang); verbal communications (e.g.McKinlay, 1975; Ley, 1988).
2. Patient and practitioner diagnosis and style –
   Practitioner style: doctor and patient-centred (Byrne and Long, 1976; Savage and Armstrong,1990). Practitioner diagnosis: type I and type II errors. Disclosure of information (e.g. Robinson and West, 1992).
3. Misusing health services –
   Delay in seeking treatment (e.g. Safer, 1979). Misuse: hypochondriasis (e.g. Barlow and Durand, 1995), Munchausen syndrome (e.g. Aleem and Ajarim, 1995).