The study aimed to identify those patients referred to a psychiatric out-patient clinic who had sexual or marital difficulties and who could be offered help with these problems, although none of the patients had been referred primarily for sexual or marital therapy. The methods of assessment formed a series of filtering devices for screening the sample, and possible reasons for discrepancies in the results are discussed. Twelve per cent of the sample had sexual or marital problems and were offered treatment, and it is suggested that this proportion may be an underestimate of the 'true' frequency of such problems in the sample. Implications of this finding for the provision of treatment resources in the psychiatric out-patient setting are considered.