Siri D. Berge (Norway)
University of Bergen
Department of Global Public Health and Primary Care
Siri Dalsmo Berge is a PhD-student at the University of Bergen in Norway. She has been a general practitioner specialist for several years, and is educated in couples therapy. She is the head of a group practice of GPs in Southern Norway, and supervises and educates future GP specialists. In addition, she has experience as a medical doctor at a child and adolescent psychiatry department, a local prison, community clinics and as a high school GP. Siri Dalsmo Berge's research focuses on couple relationship problems in general practice, how the GPs handle their patients’ couple relationship problems, and the patients’ experiences from the consultations. She got interested in the topic after years of conversations with patients having relational problems, and reading research about how much couple relationship problems influence health. Though she only found a limited amount of studies exploring the GP’s role in this. Couple relationship problems in general practice is a novel field, and last year, she and her co-authors published an article finding that one of four patients has talked about their couple relationship with their GP. At WONCA she will talk about her latest research on how GPs deal with patients’ couple relationship problems.

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 Conference Calendar

HOW DO GENERAL PRACTITIONERS HANDLE COUPLE RELATIONSHIP PROBLEMS? A FOCUS-GROUP STUDY FROM NORWAY.

Session Name
OVERARCHING TOPICS (ID 80)
Date
10.07.2021, Saturday
Session Time
12:30 PM - 02:00 PM
Room
Hall 6
Presenter
Lecture Time
01:03 PM - 01:14 PM
Session Icon
Pre-Recorded with Live Q&A

Abstract

Abstract Body

Background and purpose

Couple relationship satisfaction is related to physical and mental health and longevity. In a Norwegian study from 2020, one of four patients reported that they had talked about their couple relationship with their general practitioner (GP). The purpose of this study was to explore how GPs’ experience couple relationship problems and how they identify patients with couple relationship problems.

Methods

This is an exploratory qualitative study. In 2020, we conducted three semi-structured focus group interviews with eighteen GPs. We developed a semi-structured interview guide and used systematic text condensation for the inductive analyses.

Results

All participating GPs reported an abundance of experiences handling couple relationship problems in their practice. These issues both served as explanation to relevant clinical problems and were important in a holistic approach to the patients and their families. The GPs had different amounts of training in psychotherapy. Some emphasized that in medical education, doctors learn communication skills useful for individual consultations, but do not develop skills for dyadic counselling. The most experienced GPs felt qualified to support patients with couple relationship problems, though none of the participants could see themselves as couples therapists. Some wanted specific tools for the GP to use when this issue is brought up.

Conclusions

Experienced GPs are comfortable having supportive conversations with individual patients regarding couple relationship problems. GPs could need more skills coping with patients’ relational problems and dyadic counselling. A first-aid-kit for GPs facing patients with couple relationship problems might be useful.

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