Medical School Professor Tests Computer Psychiatry

Dr. Warner V. Slack, assistant professor of Medicine, has developed a computer which may be able to replace a psychiatrist during the initial stages of analysis.

The computer, called a 'DP-12, provides a set of questions which, when answered by the patient, can prepare the analyst for in-depth psychiatric sessions.

The questions, which appear in a 12-inch television screen in the center of the computer, are designed to determine a subject's feelings about himself and other people.

The questions are of two types: those that can be answered "yes" or "no," and those that require more complex answers.

The patient responds to yes-or-no questions by pressing one of fourbuttons, which read "yes," "no," "don't understand," or "skip it." Longer answers are read into the computer's tape recorder for later examination by the psychiatrist.

A tape of the patient's dialogue comes out as a summary of his medical history, which the doctor later reads and analyzes. Prior to examination by the doctor, however, the patient may erase anything he has said.

Slack has tested the computer psychiatrist on a group of 32 subjects. He said that most of the patients had little difficulty in adjusting to talking to a computer rather than a human.

Slack said he feels computer psychiatry will greatly increase the availability of psychiatric care, especially among lower-income groups.

Although the cost of the entire computer-console unit--upwards of $25,000--is likely to be prohibitive for private psychiatrist, large clinics and community health centers could use the machine at a lower cost per person than if they used human analysts.