Psychiatry

Question: What is the difference between Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology? I am currently enrolled in school studying for my B.S. in Psychology, and I really don't know what career path I'd like to take. Im narrowing it down to the Forensic field, but there are some differences in Psychology and Psychiatry. If you are either a FORENSIC Psychologist or FORENSIC Psychiatrist, your experiences and job description would be greatly appreciated.

Answer: a psychiatrist is a medically trained doctor, a psychologist isn't. So you couldn't be a forensic psychiatrist without studying medicine

Question: What university has a good program in Psychiatry? I'm looking for a good program in Psychiatry to go on to after I graduate with a BS in Psychology. Also, what science should I take?

Answer: You don't really specialize in Psychiatry until you get an MD and enter your residency -- so just try to get into the best medical school that you can. Once you have your MD, you will be in a better position to decide where to do your internship and residency. You can major in any field to get into medical school -- as long as you take the premed classes. See the link below. You will have to take Calculus, Biology, Physics and two years of Chemistry (including Organic Chemistry). It would be a good idea to take more -- so majoring in biology or chemistry would be a good idea.

Question: What is the difference between Psychology and Psychiatry? I know that with Psychiatry- they prescribe pills for whatever issue you may have. with Psychology they dont. But besides that- what are the differences? Please advise. Thanks in advance!

Answer: Years ago, there probably wasn't a huge difference and that's why most people wanted to go to psychiatrists (since they were the MDs.) Now though, MOST (no, not ever single one) psychiatrists simply write out prescriptions for meds, ask if you have any bad side effects, stuff like that. This is because psychiatrists (again, mostly) believe all mental health issues are brain disorders, symptoms have no particular meaning and you need to get rid of them ASAP. Psychologists help you access emotions (which is not possible if they've been blunted by medication) so that you can figure out the meanings of your symptoms and move your way through them. I mean, this is a really simplistic explanation, but it would take a long time to explain about the varieties of therapies used. Having a caring person REALLY listen and understand what you're saying is probably the most important part of any therapy.

Question: What is the model of psychiatry and mental health services in Canada? In the U.S. psychiatry has turned into a medication-oriented discipline. Any 'psychotherapy' offered is mostly cognitive-behavioral, and quite brief in duration. Finding a psychiatrist or mental health professional to discuss the big existential problems is next to impossible in the U.S. I'm wondering if it's like that in Canada as well since their healthcare system is different, or so I understand.

Answer: Same story in Canada. Health care is still "rationed", in a sense, as it is by managed care organizations in the USA. Medication is the first line approach (cheapest). Brief term modalities are second (2nd cheapest).

Question: What college has a good Psychiatry program? I would like to be a psychiatrist someday, but I need a good college. I really want to go to Princeton, but I'm not for sure if that has a good Psychiatry program. Does it?

Answer: College...Do you mean community college? I think you can take general classes from community colleges and make sure they are transferable to Princeton, which I doubt. There are good universities with great Psychiatry programs, like Stanford.

Question: Why do people constantly relate psychiatry with psychology as if they were entirely the same? I am a psychology major. I believe in natural cures and I do not support all of psychiatry of psychology. For instance, I am uncertain about certain forms of drug therapy, as well as the elusive terms "mental disease" or "chemical imbalance." Example: Depression is not a disease and should not be treated with drugs. There are alternative forms of therapy.

Answer: As a psychologist, all I can say is that if you do become a psychologist, I hope you don't treat any of my depressed patients. It's not as simple as a black-and-white or all-or-none issue. There is a huge diversity in the experience of mental illness. For some people... depression is not a "disease," drugs are not the treatment of choice for them, and they respond just fine to alternative forms for therapy, like exercise, nutrition, counseling, etc. For others... depression is extremely debilitating and disabling, and different kinds of medication may work at different times of their lives. In addition, one person might suffer just "one episode" of depression, while for others, depression is a chronic condition... and different treatments might "work" at different stages or times of their lives, depending on a multitude of factors. The point is that one size does not fit all... and this is for just one condition. Psychology and psychiatry deal with many conditions... anxiety, autism, bipolar, psychosis, PTSD, etc etc etc. My suggestion is that if you are going to become the best psychologist you can be... then, open your mind. It's not necessary to give up your beliefs 100%... we all have our biases and kudos to you for trying to be honest about them. However, the wise and intelligent practitioner understands that the more they know, the less they know. They try to reconcile their biases with the best available evidence and remain flexible in their thinking. Good luck on your journey.

Question: What is the fastest way to get into the field of psychiatry? I love the field of psychiatry and I would like to be a psychiatrist one day. I am wondering what I can do to work in the field now, gain some experience, gain some knowledge, and make some money to pay for college.

Answer: You can work as a mental health technician on a psych floor, volunteer at a social service agency, or a crisis hot line. Work or volunteer for community organizations like MADD, etc. Try going on fastweb.com which links you to all sorts of scholarships or monetary awards which you would not have to repay.

Question: What are some good colleges for psychiatry? I'm looking into becoming a psychiatrist and I'm trying to figure out what some good colleges would be. I live in Tennessee so I was also trying to find out if UT has a good psychiatry department. Can you help me please?

Answer: Psychiatry is a branch of medicine. People don't usually study psychiatry in college. They go to college to get a BS. After college they go to medical school to become an MD. After becoming an MD, they spend a year as a medical intern. At that point, the enter a residency program in Psychiatry -- where they spend several years mastering the subject. UT would be a decent enough school to go to for your BS. You should take all the Pre-Med classes. But it is always a good idea to take more than the minimum required, so you should major in Biology or Chemistry. While UT is a decent enough school, goinf to a better university for your BS will increase your chances of getting into medical school.

Question: Where can i find a good inpatient psychiatry patient satisfaction questionairre and bed check form? I need to design a few forms for my job. A patient tracking sheet that will help me record behavior and location quickly and accurately ( maybe a bubble sheet with codes for location and behavior). Also i need to make a inpatient psychiatry quality of care type questionnaire. is there a place online where i can find good ideas or templates to go off of?

Answer: You actually have already answered your own question. For the bed check, use your works codes and put them on one side of the bubble sheet and the room and the other side. Fill in the bubbles. You had the solution right there. As for the questionnaire, write the questions for what you want to ask. Either use a scale system (1-10) or quick answers for patients to fill out. The scale will allow you to have quantitative data that will allow you to say "quality of care" it 7.2 overall for the month of june. "satisfaction of food" is 4.0 overall for the week of May 1-7. Things like that. If you use a short answer, you will only be able to compile the answers and look over them, there will be no way of putting it in a way that you can see the overall satisfaction or dissatisfaction.

Question: What are some good schools in regards to psychiatry? For example, living in Illinois, Columbia is a good school to go to for film and arts. If I wanted to go to a good school that has a good reputation for psychiatry or psychology, what are some that I should look into?

Answer: Kevin M, There is a lot of information on the web that can help . Different schools offer different programs and many people change concentrations or majors. http://www.americaschoicetoday.com/Art-School.html

Question: Psychiatry? Philosophically, what do you think of psychiatry? Philosophy is a hobby of mine...I like to think in different ways, read philosophical books, watch movies like Waking Life. As of late, however, I've become interested in psychiatry. I want to know how anatomy is connected with the mind, the biological influences...Do you think philosophy is important in psychiatry, and do they overlap? What do you think of it in general?

Answer: As a person interested in participating in both fields here are my thoughts: I am currently training to become a psychiatrist (or neurologist) which is a decision that I have reasoned based on my philosophical interests. I also hope to pursue further studies in cognitive neuroscience focusing research on the mind-body problem. As you can imagine there is a lot of overlap between the two fields especially in philosophy of mind where a good percentage of important figures are not philosophers but scientists, including psychiatrists. Keep in mind that the field of psychiatry is about treating patients with cognitive disorders not about solving philosophical problems. Psychiatry today is more concerned with perscribing drugs than about introspective analysis. One thing that I have had to learn is that when I am a doctor my primary concerns will be about patients, not about my own problems. I have two interests that are seemingly related but I will have to keep separate in practice. What I hope though is that working with people that have a completely different conscious experience from my own will offer me clues to guide my scientific and philosophical research.