Quaternary prevention and mental health

Quaternary prevention, as a product of the patient doctor relationships, involves actions taken to identify patients at risk of Overmedicalisation, to protect them from unnecessary medical procedures and offer ethically acceptable alternatives. Quaternary prevention, born from the meeting between two worlds of thought, two cultural backgrounds, two kinds of anxiety implies deep implications for decision about mental health issues. There is an urgent need for quaternary prevention in primary care mental health, to counter the medicalisation of normal distressing human emotions and take care with humanity of suffering human beings.
The relational bases of the P4 concept are exposed. A Continual Profesional Development session (two days) of a team of 25 French GPs based in St Etienne, France (ADEPUL, CPD society, October 2016) about “Quaternary attitude and mental health” in six steps is related. Step 1; one month before the seminar : retrieving of clinical personal experiences . Step 2; sharing experiences in little groups report synthesis.
Step 3; (second day) Critical reading report experts contributions. Step 4; Disease or disease mongering in mental health case reports debate. Step 5; Pros & cons trial about ADD/H, tribunal, attorney, lawyer, jury and final judgment. Step 6; After one month, exchange of modified clinical situations related by participants.