Balint groups. Look inside family medicine.
For sixty years Michael Balint has been a source of inspiration to many generations of general practitioners, having been a pioneer in the study of the doctor-patient relationship. The actual medical context puts this relationship under pressure, more than ever before. This article puts forward that Balint’s thinking -applied object-relation theory- remains very relevant today and needs to be encouraged. It’s illustrated by a vignette and reports actual publications on Balint groups.
Key words: Applied object-relation theory, Balint, doctor-patient relationship, family medicine.