Patient vs client again

Client sounds more equal.
Patient sounds patronizing,
My pdoc can call me his patient, as he is providing me with medical care.

In the NHS they say "service users". Mine says "people I work with". But personally I wouldn't be offended by either "patient" or "client". I think the intention behind the words, or the way they are said, matters most to me. E.g. someone could probably manage to give a patronising delivery to any of these names. Or a kind and caring tone. Etc.

Mine both used patient. For me, it does not matter. I don't feel inferior relative to a doctor that helps with a medical condition and calls me patient, or anyone else who provides whatever service I pay for, lawyer, financial advisor, whatever. I do expect all of these to care about what they do and do a decent job. I do not expect any of these to protect me or provide safety other than whatever protection a good service and performing good procedures will achieve. I think costumer would also work for me, better than consumer. I use client here on PC because most people do. I do see therapy as a business transaction in general, just the material to work with is some personal life stuff.

Although legally the term "client" should be used, I prefer "patient" as it is more humane to me. Lawyers, telecom companies, etc. have "clients" and not "patients", and as therapists are not medical doctors but treat psychiatric patients, are blurring the lines in my opinion. Not to criticize them, I know the difference they can make.

Am I reading you correctly that you think there's some legal reason to say client instead of patient? There isn't, neither of those terms are restricted in any legal way. And some therapists are medical doctors, though it's less common for psychiatrists to do therapy than it used to be.

I am not from the USA so sorry if I caused confusion. I heard therapists use the term "client" more than "patient" so I formed my opinion without knowledge. I know that some therapists are medical doctors, but aren't most therapists counselors, social workers or psychologists etc.? Psychiatrists don't usually provide psychotherapy and or counseling otherwise specifically stated.

I prefer "client". I am a client. I am paying them for their time and expertise. I could live with "patient" probably, but I'd likely complain about it. I've never had a therapist use that word though.

I prefer patient. I never liked the word client even though it's popular nowadays. Client sounds like distance, patient sounds like caring.

Yes, therapists are Mental health counselors, social workers, psychologists. Psychiatrists who perform therapy aren't considered therapists (even if patients call them that) so they are completely different roles. So while patient isn't a legally protected term, some people might find it misused.

You're right, most therapists aren't psychiatrists, but some psychiatrists do provide psychotherapy (though it's more common in some areas than others). And all psychiatrists in the US get training in psychotherapy, even if many of them don't practice as therapists after their training is over.

I've personally found that having a psychiatrist as a therapist works really well for me and has some distinct advantages over seeing separate people for meds and therapy, so I like to remind people that it's still a treatment model that exists out there.

Why wouldn't a psychiatrist who performs therapy be considered a therapist? My psychiatrist refers to himself as a therapist and a psychiatrist interchangeably, since he's both. Not all psychiatrists are therapists, but not all psychologists or social workers are therapists either.

I understand that psychotherapy is a part of the medical education you need to become a psychiatrist (not sure if it's taught in med school where you receive your MD) but I am not sure why most don't give psychotherapy. The meds + therapy combination should work very well for most people, since the same person gives you treatment.

Yes, in the US they get therapy training during psychiatry residency, not med school.

I totally agree with you, combined treatment should be more common than it is. I suspect some don't provide therapy because they're not interested in it, while for some it's economic (seeing four 15 minute med check patients in an hour can be much more lucrative than seeing one meds + therapy patient in the same hour) or a matter of what setting they work in (psychiatrists doing therapy usually have to be in private practice since most clinics and other settings won't hire them for a therapy caseload).

It works so much better for me to get meds and therapy with the same person, though. Not only does it mean only one set of appointments to manage, but it means that if things are going poorly or there's a problem, my therapist can suggest a medication adjustment as one option among many, rather than it having to occur to *me* that the issue could be helped by medication changes and then going to seek that out.