AbstractsPsychology

Modern health-care services in general hospital settings are often characterised by mUltidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches to patient care. The underlying rationale of these approaches lies in the potential pooling of specialised medical resources from a variety of medical fields. Consequently there is usually an increase in the diagnostic procedures available, theoretically offering a more comprehensive health service. Whilst the above approach is seen to be effective when the health-car~ team specialists subscribe to one encompassing paradigm, it is hypothesised that the existence of other alternative paradigms may affect the efficacy of team work. Using the interface between the Psychology and Renal units of J.G. Strijdom Hospital as an example, this study describes the effect of paradigmatic differences within a team approach on the conceptualisation of problems and treatment choices. The traditional medical approach is contrasted against a systems based psychological approach. The existence of the two approaches within a single team encounters difficulty in the gaining of consensus regarding the level of focus.