1. Aims The primary care section was started in 1998 and aims to bring together GPs, psychotherapists, psychologists, nurses, health visitors and counsellors working in primary care who are interested in a psychoanalytically-informed and psychodynamic approach to their work. The section seeks to provide a framework of communication with a regional and national structure. Its functions include:
Andrew Elder, Co-Chair, GP Paddington Green Health Centre, 4 Princess Louise Close, London, W2 1LQ. Honorary Consultant in General Practice and Primary Care, Tavistock Centre, London NW3. Mary Burd, Co-Chair, Clinical Psychologist, Psychotherapist, London.
Sue Blake, GP, London and Tavistock Centre.
Doris Blass GP and psychotherapist, London.
Anna Bravesmith Psychotherapist, London.
Jane Dammers GP, Newcastle.
Eleanor Cowen Psychologist, psychotherapist, Hillingdon, Middx.
Jeremy Clarke Primary care counsellor, South London.
Hermione Pool, Nurse Practitioner, London.
Joan Schachter Consultant Psychotherapist, London.
Puri Sharifi Psychotherapist in Primary care, London.
Jonathan Smith Primary care counsellor, West London.
Jo Stubley Consultant Psychotherapist, Tavistock Centre, London.
Sotiris Zalidis GP, London.
Conferences:
Past Conferences
Inaugural conference held at Tavistock Centre November 26th/27th 1999 "Therapeutic Practice and Practical Therapy: Different windows on a shared world".
"Hands-on:Hands-off. Body and Mind in the General Practice Team". This second annual conference was held over two days in February 2001 at the London Voluntary Sector Resource Centre in Holloway, London.
"The Bairn's Bad Again. The experience of an infant or young child who is repeatedly brought to the GP practice". This conference was held in Newcastle on June 2001, and was organised by a multidisciplinary group intersted in Primary Care in the North East of England. Attended by 70 participants including Midwives, Health Visitors, GPs, psychotherapists, and mental health workers in child and adolescent services.
The section's third annual conference "Making the Most of Brief Encounters in Primary Care" was held at The London Voluntary Sector Resource Centre, Holloway Road, London N7 on November 15th/16th 2002. The conference addressed Brief Therapy viewed from a Primary Care perspective and included the potentially therapeutic nature of the many different 'encounters' that occur in primary care as well as the 'brief' therapy conducted by counsellors and therapists.
A further national (fourth) conference was held in Newcastle in November 2004: The Tyranny of Niceness: Difficult Feelings in Primary Care.
Planned Conferences
The Fifth National Conference of the Primary Care Section will be held in London at the London Voluntary Sector Resource Centre (Holloway Rd, London N7) on November 10th/11th 2006 entitled: "GENERAL PRACTICE OR TARGET PRACTICE: Maintaining Meaning in Primary Care". Further details and a Conference Booking Form are available in the 'Conferences and Lectures' section of the APP website.
Research/publications: One of the aims of the section is to support appropriate research projects which members of the section would like to pursue under the auspices of the APP. The APP Journal 'Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy' is published four times a year and welcomes relevant submissions about psychodynamic aspects of primary care.
Relevant Reading:
Consultation/Clinical: Andrew Elder will be pleased to respond to requests for supervision, workshops, consultation to practices or establishing Balint groups etc.
Parkside clinic can offer case discussion seminars for counsellors/psychotherapists working in GP practices in either Westminster or Kensington. The department is available to discuss consultation work to practices and to offer 'one-off' consultations to professionals working in primary care. Contact Dr Joan Schachter, Consultant Psychotherapist, Parkside Clinic, 63-65 Lancaster Road, Ladbroke Grove, London W11 1QD. Tel: 0207 221 4656.
Regions: In the North East of England there is a small but thriving multidisciplinary group who are intersted in the application of psychoanalytic thinking and practice to the Primary Care setting. We developed a North East Primary Care group in 2000 and held our inaugural conference in June 2001. The title was "The Bairn's Bad Again - The Recurrent Presentation of a Symptomatic Child". The keynote speakers were Mrs Dilys Daws and Dr Andrew Elder. The conference was successful, with over 60 delegates attending from a wide range of professional backgrounds. Since then we have been concentrating on forming links with the Vocational Training Scheme for General Practitioners, and some members of the APP are going to be involved in a pilot project running 'Balint Groups' for GP registrars with the scheme organisers for the VTS. Whilst Balint groups for GP registrars are the norm in some parts of the country this is a new venture in the North East and we are pleased and excited to be doing this work. If you are intersted in finding out more about us and what we are doing please get in touch. The local contact people are:
Liaison with related organisations
Association of Infant Mental Health (UK), Child and Family Department, Tavistock Centre, 120 Belsize Lane, London NW3 5BA. Website: www.aimh.org.uk
Balint Society , David Watt, Honorary Secretary, Tollgate Health Centre, 220 Tollgate Road, London E6 5JS. Telephone: 0171 445 7709. Fax: 0171 445 7715. Website: www.balint.co.uk
Counsellors in Primary Care, 95 Hewarts Lane, Bognor Regis, West Sussex PO21 3DJ. Contact: Joan Foster, (Chair): Telephone: 01243 268322. Fax: 01243 268433. E-mail: cpc@cpct.co.uk
Institute of Psychosexual Medicine , 12 Chandos Street, Cavendish Square, London W1G 9DR Tel/fax 0207 580 0631. Email: ipm@telinco.co.uk
Andrew Elder Tel/fax: 020 8883 3399. Email: andrewelder@blueyonder.co.uk
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