The careful assessment tool for managing patients with medically unexplained symptoms – The experience of Slovenian family medicine trainees: A qualitative study

CAREFUL ASSESSMENT OF THE SITUATION (active listening as part of the careful assessment):
THERAPEUTIC EFFECT -> possible change in patient beliefs -> better understanding of the patient’s own condition (e.g. pain, fears).
THERAPEUTIC GOAL: decreasing the power of predisposing factors, limiting precipitating factors, controlling perpetuating factors
PREDISPOSING FACTORS
chronic childhood medical illnesses
childhood maltreatment
low resilience – childhood deprivation
low social support
PRECIPITATING FACTORS
psychiatric disorders (depression, anxiety, panic… )
social, financial, or occupational stress
changes in social support
change in routine
PERPETUATING FACTORS decreased physical activity
weight gain
social isolation
decreased self-confidence

Gender	Number of GPs (N=184)	Percentage (%)
Male	55	29.8
Female	112	60.9
No data	17	9.3
Infirmary location
City	49	26.6
Town	74	40.2
Countryside	31	16.8
No data	30	16.4
Employment
Public institution	140	76.0
Private institution	3	1.6
Concession	33	17.9
No data	8	4.5
Years of service in family medicine
Maximum	8
Minimum	2
Average	3.3

1. Did you gain anything in this clinical case (you as a young professional) using the Careful Assessment tool?

Please describe it:

2. Did you learn anything from using the Careful Assessment tool in this clinical case?

If YES, what? Please describe it:

If NO, how do you explain this? Why not? Please describe it:

3. How useful was the “Careful Assessment” tool in this clinical case?

4. How did the patient respond to your treatment in this clinical case?

5. Do you estimate that you have improved the treatment of your patient in this clinical case?

If YES, please describe it:

If NO, how do you explain this? Why not? Please describe it:

Périodicité:: 4 fois par an
Sujets de la revue:: Medicine, Clinical Medicine, Hygiene and Environmental Medicine