The fake doctors
Recently I wrote about my disdain for psychiatrists who wear white coats. In no other field of medicine will you see such a shiny, immaculate white coat as those worn by psychiatrists. Many of the residents I know have coats with creases in them that are as sharp as the day they bought them. To this day, I’ve only seen one psychiatrist with the stain at any time on his white coat. He openly admits that the discoloration is to due some coffee spilled during break.
Psychiatrists run in fear from any medical issue that patients may present with. Slightly elevated blood pressure? Call an internist. Slightly elevated blood sugar? Call the internist. Slightly elevated cholesterol? You get the idea. The residents and attendings use a shotgun approach to ordering labs and when anything comes back abnormal, they run and hide behind other doctors like a terrified small child does when he hides behind his parents’ legs. Now I know they had to learn medicine during medical school. I know they had to pass STEP III to get licensed as physicians. But the overwhelming response from psychiatrists—when presented with medical issues—is, “Why concern ourselves with kidney function and other nonsense when there are other pressing issues at hand?” On two separate occasions I have witnessed residents state that metformin leads to hypoglycemia. Any first-year medical student knows that metformin, a drug used to manage diabetes, is employed as a first-line treatment precisely because it does not cause hypoglycemia. Yet here they are, these disgraces to the title M.D., making untrue statements about the side effects of a very popular medication.
Psychiatrists act as if they should not concern themselves with medical issues, yet then get offended when people say that they aren’t real doctors. In this rotation we employ a device known as the mental status exam (MSE) to check our patients’ functional abilities. I have heard more than one practitioner state that the MSE is the psychiatrist’s physical exam. To this day I have yet to see a note that links the MSE to the body in a similar fashion that a neurology note can link physical exam findings to lesions in the brain. They claim to be medical experts of the mind, yet are neither talented as physicians nor as therapists. I cannot think of a greater waste of education than that of psychiatry.
For every psychiatrist there is, one seat in medical school is given up so that a person can join the pseudoscience realm of Freud. Their expertise requires eight years of training (four years of medical school + four years of residency) that do not translate into meaningful results. At best, they are misunderstood practitioners of the id and super ego. At worst, they are directly leading to the current shortage of medical doctors.
Therapists, on the other hand, make a unique contribution to the world by promoting insight and new behaviors that can lead to a decline in depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and maladaptive work and social behaviors. Therapists require many years of training and experience to provide an unparalleled level of service to people who need them. I have no problem with therapists. Psychiatrists, however, are a drain to our society because they can neither serve as medical physicians nor are they skilled practitioners of psychotherapy. Our only hope is that Medicare and insurance companies continue to cut reimbursement rates for psychiatrists to the point that the field is abandoned altogether. Only then will be free of their tyranny.
Half MD.com 
none said,
February 26, 2008 at 5:16 pm
harsh…ouch.
Michael Rack, MD said,
March 2, 2008 at 4:05 am
“Our only hope is that Medicare and insurance companies continue to cut reimbursement rates for psychiatrists to the point that the field is abandoned altogether.”
I am a psychiatrist, but I am also a real doctor too (board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine in internal medicine and sleep medicine).
Medicare/insurance cuts won’t have too much of an effect. Most psychiatrists in private practice don’t take medicare. Many run cash practices (they collect cash up front and then assist their patients in filing for out-of network benefits).
Dr. Alice said,
March 6, 2008 at 6:13 am
Nice to see another medical person who’s recognize the fraudulent nature of psychiatry. I hated my third year rotation, and even then I didn’t manage to produce such scathing denunciations. Keep it up. I hope you enjoy seeing, on medicine and every other rotation, the number of elderly patients drugged up with ativan, prozac, lexapro, restoril, just because it makes it easier for other people to deal with them.
Y. S. said,
March 16, 2008 at 9:26 pm
Though a good read, it is a bit harsh.
Woah said,
March 25, 2008 at 2:05 pm
Haha, I really hope my colleagues aren’t actually this dumb! Wouldn’t be too big of a surprise though.
John said,
July 3, 2008 at 5:55 pm
I beg to disagree. It really sounds as though your exposure to “real” psychiatrist is limited. I am a third year and I just spent the most awesome month with an incredible doctor. I used to think there was little one could do for the criminally insane, but this guy is unbelievable and gets results. His knowledgebase is wide too. Since he sees those with extreme pathology, the efficacy of his various therapies are very obvious. And if he has someone with basic health issues, he takes care of these as well. He is the first shrink who I have seen that uses his stethoscope on every meeting. He is above all, first a doctor, then a shrink. He told me all docs must be good PCPs first, then know their specialty.
I think the guy should be an inspiration to all docs who get too into their specialty and forgot the patient is not a collection of artificially separate systems. I think you may have forgot this in your analysis of above.
John said,
July 3, 2008 at 5:58 pm
Oh, yeah, the above was not meant to flame you, my friend, only to perhaps ask you to reconsider your thoughts based on your exposure to a limited number of physicians who chose psychiatry as their specialty.
Danielle said,
July 18, 2008 at 1:18 pm
I can’t believe any “medical expert” would EVER say anything that IGNORANT about psychiatrists! A psychiatrist is certainly a healer more so than most MD’s (Mis Diagnosers).
Neurosurgens are prob. the most respected Dr’s in the medical field. Fair enough! You respect therapists, so why is a professional who treats the brain AND the mind so lowly regarded?
If you ever took a medical ethics class, you would know that mental illness is the WORST type of illness, because “when one ceases to THINK like a human, they are NOT considered human” Isn’t it our complex brains/minds that which give us our advantage over other species?
So why does someone who bestows “humanity”, anything short of a miracle worker?
“A mind is a terrible thing to waste” What happens if it’s lost?
Doc, take a look at the Merck Medical Guide. Look up Scizophrenia. Listed by the WHO as 1 of the 10 “Worst afflictions unleashed on humankind”. Not only do these people suffer HORRENDOUS pain, but they are failed by the nurturers (family), protectors (police), healers (you), and abusers (the ignorant). Do the physically ill get this bonus? Do you get the luxury of position to decide if a person who threatens suicide if committed again, or society at large if their not? Do your patients even know somethings wrong, and able to express it to you? Does radiology the “Mecca” of healthcare back-up/corfirm/pretty much dictate your diagnosis? (I presume radiologists are not real Dr’s either).
-Even if my argument falls on deaf ears, HEAR this! You and your fellow God-complex suffers are NOT the heroes of medicine.
Scientists, Researchers, and Chemists are! You are merely messangers of vicarious, memorized, rote knowledge, passed on down by the “Real” warriors fighting the backlashes of Mother Nature by inovation, experimentation, and dedication.
I am NOT a Dr. I am an ex-ultrasound tech, applying for a psych PH.d, and a MANIC-DEPRESSIVE sufferer, Whom corrently is pieceing back a horribly shattered life, thanks to a psychiatrist and all those involved with psych. rehab.
Thank you for taking the time to read this,
Danielle
Jay said,
July 28, 2008 at 7:35 pm
I don’t understand the personal slant of the original posting, do you mean psychiatrists are bad people? Sure, psychiatry is ages behind other specialties in continuity of care, proper and consistent diagnosis, effective treatment and long term research outcome based treatment systems. Considering mental illness/substance abuse is also leagues more challenging than most physical disorders, this seems fairly with current human innovation and funding priorities. Unless your advocating for the abolishment of pharmacotherapy for psychiatric patients, why not work to improve the practice of psychiatric medicine before talking down about it’s practitioners?
Joshua Gaines said,
September 11, 2008 at 4:12 am
You sound like a Scientologist.
QuarterMD said,
April 3, 2009 at 4:34 am
Geezus…that girl Danielle seems pretty crazy.
Well I came across your blog by accident. I was actually just looking up information on the military match because I was curious to see if certain military residencies for really competitive specialties like Derm are easier to get into compared to civilian residencies (was trying to see if there was a back door way to get in). I was looking for ave USMLE scores by specialty, number applied:number accepted ratios..that kind of stuff, but I guess it doesn’t exist since they don’t even offer derm out medical school according to one of your earlier posts I read. Anyways definitely not going to do the military scholarship. I decided I wasn’t back in undergrad but was flirting with the idea again after having to take out 66K just for my first year. Anyway your blogs really funny and has kept me entertained the last couple hours. Can’t wait for 4th year…
Half M.D.: Air Force medical students cannot enter derm, but Army students can. Joining the military in the copes of getting into residency on the off chance that it might be less competitive is a very bad idea.
Jim said,
May 8, 2009 at 1:43 pm
There are other areas of science which don’t claim to fully understand the brain, if psychiatry is putting drugs into it then either it has the edge and isn’t sharing the knowledge or its making it up.
Jim said,
May 8, 2009 at 1:45 pm
Paxil study 329 disagrees with Danielle
Jim said,
May 8, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Sorry for all the posting but I noticed this from Danielle also:
“Doc, take a look at the Merck Medical Guide. Look up Scizophrenia. Listed by the WHO as 1 of the 10 “Worst afflictions unleashed on humankind”. Not only do these people suffer HORRENDOUS pain, but they are failed by the nurturers (family), protectors (police), healers (you), and abusers (the ignorant)”
The WHO also looked at the prognosis for schizophrenia in 3rd world countries, where they hardly have psych drugs and mental health is very low on their list of priorities. I would suggest you look it up.
Jim said,
May 8, 2009 at 1:56 pm
Horrendous pain inflicted by people like you Danielle.
BMD said,
May 31, 2009 at 6:49 am
I am a newly graduating medical student about to start my residency in Psychiatry. I must say that the author of this article is categorically incorrect and offensive in his description of my field. First, off I am and always will be a “real doctor.” I kicked butt on step 1,2, and 3, and I have been continually complimented by attendings on my clinical skills during rotations such as internal medicine, family medicine, and emergency medicine. I have absolutely zero fear of dealing with patients with general medical complaints – abdominal pain or chest pain or otherwise – I know how to do a belly exam, I know how to read an EKG, I know differential diagnosis for a variety of chief complaints one should know as a new MD. Now, I ask you, what is the definition of “medical” or “doctor?” You may have encountered a psychiatrist who doesn’t know (or remember) the indications for tPA, the ottowa ankle rules, the mechanism of penicillin, or how to manage coagulopathy caused by hepatitis C-induced hepatic carcinoma, but how many obsetricians or orthopedic surgeons know the neurobiology of depression, the differential diagnosis of psychosis or depressed mood or anxiety? Furthermore, the author of this article is incorrect to say that psychiatrsts are inadequetley trained in psychotherapy. They most certainly are. My residency program has extensive training in psychotherapy. I plan to work my tail off on my internal medicine rotations during intern year, and continue a lifelong tradition of reading both internal medicine/family medicine and psychiatry articles, as these fields are all interrelated.
As new physician, I will treat my mental health patients pharmocologically, psychodynamically, and culturally. If my schizophrenia patient is tachy to 101 or develops essential hypertension (diagnosed after secondary causes have been ruled out [conn’s syndrome, pheo, renal disease, etc.] ), I will not consult internal medicine quickly as this author suggests.
Just who do you think you are buddy? If you care to challenge me, medical doctor=physician=psychiatrist, on medical knowledge – both general non-psychiatric medicine and psychiatric medicine, I will take you on. I know my shit, I will always know my shit, and to be frank, you don’t know shit about the type of medical students that psychiatry attracts. We are very intelligent, and we have great medical knowledge. Our attending psychiatrists are the same way. You sir, are a quack.
Rahul said,
June 26, 2009 at 3:22 pm
I would prefer to do the 5-year joint psychiatry/internal medicine residency and would love to see a broader range of patients. By the way, what do you think of nurse practitioners with white coats?
Half M.D.: Ideally I would prefer that no one wear white coats due to infection control. However, if they’re here to stay, then ARNP’s should wear short coats to reflect their years of training.
Anonymous, MD said,
September 4, 2009 at 12:01 am
You are certainly entitled to your opinion; however, I, being a psychiatrist almost eight years out of residency, must vouch for those diametrically opposed parties like myself. I could go on all day pointing out all of the fallacies in your statement, but I only see that as being a futile effort. The only thing that I’d like to dispel, however, is this recurrent notion that psychiatrists aren’t familiar with general medical knowledge, because, for any psychiatrist seeking board certification, it is imperative to know everything that your average GP or internist would know.The board certification test for psychiatry is laden with idiosyncrasies, and is actually far more stringent than those in other specialties of medicine.
As for your encounters with the two psychiatric residents; I find this to be very disconcerting. During my stint as an attending, I actually found all of the residents to knowledgeable.
-Anonymous, MD
Anonymous, MD said,
September 4, 2009 at 9:49 am
-EDIT-: I must note one error in my previous post; in the last sentence, I meant to say “to be very knowledgeable.”
Cedric said,
January 31, 2011 at 1:37 pm
I am currently doing my undergrad and I do want to be a psychiatrist but I hope to change the game by studying hard in medical school and always treat the general medical issues first before the psychiatric conditions. I think if Im ever going to become a great doctor that when I attain that hard earned status that I need to change the pace by always doing physical exams myself, actually utilizing my stethoscope, and treat medical illness that presents in front of me like coghs,pneumonia, diabetes hypertension or any other medical problem. I do not believe in passing a patient around or back to a primary physician just because im a psychiatrist. If im not going to establish myself as a very knowledgable, objective, outside the box doctor then i am wasting my time. Any advice for a doctor in training? Id love to hear it.
anonymous MD said,
February 14, 2011 at 5:11 am
Why are small support groups sprouting up across the nation for 3rd and 4th year medical students who are scared to disclose to their families they are pursuing psychiatry? There are anecdotal cases of students being disowned, or cut off financially by their parents. Fiancees have called off weddings when they find out their partner-to-be is going into psych. And the students themselves suffer the anxiety, pain, and anguish of disappointing their loved ones. Why all the fuss?
Well, it’s unfortunate that people have to seek out these support groups and such, but it is very revealing how deep the public disdain is for the field of psych. When I was a med student, a psychiatrist I rounded with had a patient complaining of abd pain, and he just brushed it aside, later telling me that in principle, he should never lay a finger on a patient, even if it is for a physical exam of a complaint. That situation forever tarnished my view of psych. Now, I understand the lines he didn’t want to cross, but if you want to shell out $200K, and 8+ years of your life so that you can become an “MD” who is “not allowed” to touch his patient, then go ahead. But don’t get defensive when people who ARE allowed to touch or cut open their patients think you are a lazy doofus or just an unfortunate waste of a medical education. Psychologists get the job done (more or less) and God knows we need more family medicine/primary care docs. The most defensive people I have ever encountered in my life are psychiatrists, and it certainly doesn’t take a shrink to figure out their insecurity is just beneath the surface, ready to spill out with the slightest remark or inkling that their medical skills are anything less than magnificant. If psychiatry was done away with completely, the world would keep on spinning. NPs/Psychologists would take over, and GPs would keep doling out the prozac. And the rest of us wouldn’t have to deal with this big bunch of crazy hypersensitive crybabies who tried to take the easy way out by securing low six figure salaries without having to ever get their hands dirty. Give me a freakin break! Maybe the rest of us need a support group to deal with these clowns and the giant chips on their crisp white coat shoulders.
Dr Francia said,
June 7, 2011 at 1:13 am
Be careful to judge another specialty as mere placebo.
I worked many years very closely with psychiatrists, neurosurgeons, ER docs,
internists and other specialists. They have a place in the medical arena.
Surgeons look down on psychiatrist but that is a clear sign of pure ignorance.
Psychiatry is very important specially if you know what you are doing.
In geriatric medicine it is crucial for you to understand how to manage the abnl behavior
of patients with serious neurodegenerative disorders including dementias.
unfortunately, most internists and surgeons would be useless in this case
they will be clueless. I even heard neurosurgeons say oh hyperglycemia call that
internal medicine resident for consult….
So before opening your mouth think very carefully about what you are going to say.
Dr Francia said,
June 7, 2011 at 1:17 am
psychiatry is a very important specialty
specially if you get down into the neurochemistry and neurobehavioral aspects of many psychiatric conditions,
It can be fascinating…indeed…
The greatest achievement is when your patient is responding to treatment the way you have envisioned then you know you are making a difference.
Don’t let anyone put you down because you are pursuing psychiatry….I would pursue psychiatry in a heart beat!
Dr. Naris said,
October 24, 2011 at 3:13 am
The poster is not a psychiatrist, he/she is pretending just to sell their point.
Perfectly Healthy said,
July 11, 2012 at 9:39 pm
You realize that you’re a sick puppy, right? I think you have a hairball in your 1st chakra.
LenoCok said,
May 16, 2014 at 3:29 pm
Jealous of the salary of private practice psychiatrists? Loser.
JayZ said,
June 23, 2014 at 4:40 pm
The author of this post needs to see a psychiatrist, I think he is depressed and needs help.
Holden said,
October 31, 2014 at 4:38 pm
In the defense of psychiatrists, maybe there are individuals in this occupation who would much rather focus on the psychology and therapy aspects rather than the general medical routines of a PCP and wanted to become MDs to obtain the skill to write prescriptions. I know that may sound slightly absurd being that a “doctor” should know the basics, no matter what specialty they reside in, but who can blame them for the schooling requirements set in place. I understand how you believe that psychiatrists shouldn’t hold the title of an MD if they cannot perform the job description but I believe it comes down to staying in your own lane when you specialize. Everybody has the opportunity to chose what they would like to practice for the rest of their lives once they graduate medical school. Who is to say that someone is wrong in pursuing Radiology over Cardiology, if that is their preferred interest and passion? Not everyone wants to be a surgeon just how not everyone wants to be a psychiatrist.
qqq said,
March 17, 2015 at 10:03 pm
The view from the other side is often the opposite. The “real” doctors never bother to actually talk to their patients. I came across a pt with pneumonia sitting in hospital bed with AMS because the internists never bothered to get any history or, you know, listen to the pts lungs for real. AMS = dementia = turf to C&L.
Also, see the following:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1056872705001194
Metformin is generally safe and has very low risk of hypoglycemia compared to other agents… but it is greater than if you don’t take it at all.
tim jk said,
April 18, 2015 at 5:32 pm
I have noticed that those who have a disdain for psychiatry usually have some psych issues of their own and their disdain is partly splitting and partly denial.
I have seen consults from internists and surgeons for “patient crying uncontrollably after BKA or after her first dialysis session” Are these physicians dumb? Heck No!! They did the right thing by placing that consult to psychiatry. Could they have taken a psych history, and followed the patient for depression as outpatients? Heck yeah!! But its not their turf and the insurance companies will not pay them for treating depression.
Why should a psychiatrist waste time treating DKA or replacing potassium and magnesium when there is a classmate 2 floors down credentialed to do this for better pay? Dude, are you a real doctor yourself??
This article wreaks of ignorance.
Jake said,
May 25, 2015 at 1:59 pm
This guy is probably not a physician and has not had real interactions with patients. I’m a surgeon, and see patients with mental health problems all the time. I respect my psychiatry colleagues heavily as they deal with a very grey area that is very tricky, time consuming, little instantaneous reward and makes many uncomfortable. If it weren’t for the system of procedures = money, psychiatry would likely be a very competitive field.
Joe said,
June 16, 2015 at 8:05 pm
This is incredibly idiotic. You are either ignorant, a scientologist, or just plain stupid.
PsychiatryScamEXPOSED said,
June 20, 2015 at 10:59 am
Throwing around hollow pejoratives like “scientologist” because someone disagrees with the pathetic pseudoscience of psychiatry is a transparent cop-out. There’s nothing medical or scientific about assigning people arbitrary, made-up labels and worthless placebo drugs with more adverse effects than benefits. The whole field is based on nothing but a secular superstition (the idea that the “mind” is quantifiable by medicine and that psycho-social trauma is a disease-state) and the only reason this quack profession exists is because of the gravy train of pharma dollars and because it’s a practical way to control unwanted feelings and behaviors.
I’m a psychiatric survivor and I say the OP is 100% correct.
Suzi said,
August 12, 2015 at 1:24 pm
oh, that is right (!)
so don’t call a psychiatrist when you have a patient with suicidal thoughts because you passed step 3 and you know how to handle psychiatric cases.
this is a personality type and you can see this everywhere. medicine says other fields are not doing “medicine”, surgery thinks that they can fix “everything” neurology thinks they can find all the “mysterious stuff”. This is not going to help you for your insecure ego, I am sorry.
Your Future Doc said,
September 28, 2015 at 8:31 pm
Bahahaha!! My psych residency apps are out and couldn’t be happier with the choice! Thanks for the laugh, bud.
An actual MD said,
February 9, 2016 at 12:35 am
I’m glad to see that as the comments went on most of them were in the defense of psychiatry from people of all different areas. I wonder where the original poster is now considering the original post was in 2008. I hope they’ve seen the error in their ways about judging psychiatry. If I was a program director and I ever figured out who wrote this drivel of a blog, I would immediately mark them “do not rank.” There’s a lot wrong with the OP so to point it all out would take forever, but I do hope this person has either learned some respect for all specialties or decided to pursue something other than medicine. The only way this article is excusable is if this is one of those satire “The Onion” type blogs in which case I apologize. If this article is not one of those “The Onion” type blogs, then the only real onion here is the OP. Psychiatry is the specialty that helps severely mentally ill people function in society again and become contributing members of society, and that is something to be respected. It saves lives, prevents suicides, allows people to express their emotions, and enables people to better their physical health as well.
mreynolds said,
April 16, 2016 at 12:17 pm
I am not a doctor, but a mental health patient. I ran across this post in my search of “is it weird for your psychiatrist to also be your internist?” Yes he is dual certified and I am still searching for that answer….
I have to say that my experience with at least 8 different psychiatrists have been mixed. Not because they didn’t look at other health factors, but just because I didn’t care for some of their attitudes. This is so in all other professions, not just regarding doctors. To my memory though, none of them were “fearful” of other problems not relating to mental health. They have ordered various blood or other tests. I have had my belly checked by a psychiatrist. Sure, one might say “go see your internist” if they didn’t think it was related to any medicines I was taking. But again, I never perceived this as a fear, an arrogance, or not wanting to take the time. I perceive this as i need to go see a doctor that specializes in whatever other problem that i have. This begins back with an internist so they can refer you to yet another specialist. That is how medicare works, anyway.
As far as not being trained in psychotherapy goes… I don’t know how much training a psychiatrist goes through. I personally don’t do psychotherapy with a therapist. I don’t like them because they get into too much technical stuff. It is not that I don’t understand them. I am an educated person, so I know about coping skills and everything else. For real, I just want to talk. Talk like PEOPLE do. The psychiatrists that I clicked with did just that. Sometimes we even just talk about seemingly nothing (sports, phone apps, etc) My appointments usually last at least 30 minutes and even over an hour. They know not to schedule someone too close behind me.
I guess to sum this up, as patients want their doctor (no matter the field) to treat them as individuals, I would think the doctor would want the patient to do the same and not based on bad experiences. Given that, as educated and intelligent I doctor is supposed to be, I would think that doctors would also want to be thought of as individuals by their peers even if they are in a different field. I am kind of naive like that though.
Jim said,
March 17, 2017 at 8:29 am
The problem is the patients infinitely more than the profession. I suggest you take care of them. Would you like to do that? I didn’t think so. Psychiatry is obviously a fraud but I am sure your concerns about fluoride and chem trails are legit. Idiot.
Nonsense said,
March 20, 2017 at 8:20 pm
You do realize that the scope of the jobs of internists and psychiatrists are vastly different for good reason? You know, that people specialize in different fields of medicine because no one person could possibly have the depth of knowlege to cover each field? Funny an internist could be dense enough to lack this insight. I’m not a doctor at all and even I can see that.
You just don't get it. said,
December 14, 2017 at 5:35 pm
I am a nurse who is going to school to become a doctor and we will always need psychiatrist. I currently work as a psychiatric RN. As a nurse I help my patients mentally and as a doctor I know I will be able to help them more. Psychiatry is real, and people are killing themselves everyday. You have no idea and don’t have the experience to speak.
John said,
May 21, 2018 at 10:32 am
As a rising MS3, I consider myself very aware of my lack of knowledge absence and experience when it comes to medicine and life in general. That said, having grown up in the medical world (medical family) I feel I am astute enough to identify the ramblings of a bitter, cynical, and and ignorant person in the field of medicine (unfortunately there’s a lot of people like this in medicine). Again, as an MS3, I am not licensed to provide you with any psychiatric/medical advice, but I bid you to not worry. The field of psychiatry is an ever developing one with plenty of on-going, evidence based research with promising results. If you’re lucky they will soon find an effective treatment for your personality disorder.
PS said,
January 30, 2019 at 12:07 pm
Psychiatry is a great field that provides the intellectual subtlety and humanistic regard for a physician’s family life that is sorely lacking in other fields. All that in addition to the fascinating pathology and heavy-duty drugs, both illegal and legal, that we’re tasked with managing. Many of the psychiatrists that I’ve worked with, particular those on consult/liason service, know more bread-and-butter medicine than many other non-IM specialties. I’m not sure where your dark and bitter perspective comes from.
Ben Crump said,
March 20, 2021 at 2:12 am
psychiatrists are doctors, they treat delirium, complex etoh w/d, r/o wilsons, hep c, hiv, dx dementia, and are ALWAYS one of the most highly consulted fields in any large hospital. The OP is completely wrong, and his disdain is coming from somewhere dark, page the psychiatrist.
GAYATRI Kebar said,
March 25, 2021 at 6:47 pm
This article was clearly written by someone who has no understanding of what psychiatrists do, no understanding of clinical psychopharmacology and could benefit from psychiatric help. He/she probably had a bad experience with a psychiatrist and also knows how to type. That’s it.