Advocacy for Psychodynamic Psychotherapy: Challenges and Benefits.

Psychodynamic psychotherapy, also called psychodynamic therapy (PDT), is an effective mental health treatment that is currently under siege on several fronts. It is at risk of being effectively excluded from the future of American health care. Psychiatrists need to learn how to advocate for a future mental health care delivery system that assures their patients have access to PDT. This article examines the stigma against both psychiatrists and PDT, identifies some of the challenges to advocacy that psychiatrists face, and offers an approach to developing the necessary skills that psychiatrists need to advocate effectively for PDT.