knowing the vulnerability of being a patient

Dr. Richard Friedman, professor of psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College wrote an interesting piece in The New York Times today about psychiatrists knowing themselves as they explore the minds of their patients http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/19/health/19mind.html?ex=1361250000&en=94fd6ed3fad82e9c&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink.

Psychiatry is unlike any other medical specialty, and in no other specialty is the relationship between doctor and patient as important. As Dr. Friedman says "If your cardiologist does not have the best bedside manner but effectively treats your hypertension, you might not be happy, but at least you are heading in the right medical direction. In contrast, if you do not have a rapport with your therapist, then the treatment is useless."

The psychiatry field is changing and the role of therapy in training psychiatrists is diminishing. Dr. Friedman says it was once common for psychiatry residents to undergo psychotherapy themselves, but the practice is becoming less common. But the psychiatrists who have undergone therapy can better understand the anxiety, frustration and vulnerability that comes with being a psychiatry patient. These psychiatrists would better understand all that their patients are experiencing.

Dr. Friedman does make an interesting point that therapists bring their own history to the therapeutic relationship. It seems a therapist who has explored his or her own feelings would be better equipped to explore his or her patient's feelings.