Psychosomatic medicine

Psychosomatic medicine emerged in the 20th century as a necessary complement to organ-specialized medicine and psychiatric medicine. As an additional medical qualification, psychosomatic medicine in Switzerland represents a wide-ranging cross-sectional discipline: Thus, in addition to the main care area of general practitioner psychosomatics, there are numerous other areas, such as pediatric, gynecological, pain medicine, dermatology, nutritional medicine or neurological psychosomatics. Academically, psychosomatic medicine is represented in clinics, research and teaching at various universities and colleges in Switzerland.

Clinical mission

Functional disorders

A great many physical complaints cannot be clearly reduced to a structural organ pathology or a psychiatric diagnosis and therefore defy Cartesian-dual categorization: stress disorders, primary pain disorders and other functional physical ailments can only be understood with a view to the entire organism and its perceptive and regulatory abilities. Functional complaints are absolutely real and can now be explained neurophysiologically.
The integration of functional complaints into the context of the individual as a psychophysical whole is necessary.

 

Complex diseases

Another group of patients has both physical, functional and psychological complaints, whether in the context of classic comorbidity constellations (e.g. diabetes with depression) or in the sense of diseases that a priori affect the person as a whole (e.g. eating disorders, trauma disorders, hypersensitivity syndromes, as well as chronic neurodegenerative, inflammatory and endocrine diseases). An overall somatic-psychological view that integrates organic and mental aspects of illness is required.

Research and educational mission

Psychosocial medicine

The basic medical subject of psychosocial medicine shows how psychosocial aspects and physical health interact. The “biopsychosocial disease model” is a paradigm of psychosocial medicine and has successfully established itself today. From a scientific point of view, psychosocial medicine offers numerous interfaces with other medical disciplines such as social and preventive medicine, medical psychology, medical anthropology and environmental medicine.

 

Psychology in human medicine

In its function as an interface and cross-sectional area, psychosomatic and psychosocial medicine is in many places a leader in the implementation of psychological knowledge and skills in medical training and continuing education. In addition to scientific skills, training in social, communicative and psychological skills is an essential contribution to ensuring that organ medicine grows into full human medicine.

 

 

 

Interested in more?

The following specialist and textbooks provide an overview and offer reference options.

Current specialised and textbooks