ABSTRACT
Psychiatrists are medical doctors who, a«er 4 years of college, attend medical school for 3 years, then complete a 1-year internship, a«er which they perform a 3-year residency in psychiatry at a psychiatric hospital. Some may take additional training in several dozen specialties like addiction, adolescents, and anxiety issues. Another option is a specialization in the many types of depression. Like other medical specializations, this residency is usually conducted in a teaching hospital that is a¤liated with a major university. As I recall, the psychiatric residents at Atascadero State Hospital, California, were students at Stanford University. Because they are medical doctors (M.D.), psychiatrists can prescribe medication. Other mental health professionals cannot. e others get around this problem by practicing in a psychiatric, psychological, or mental health group that includes a psychiatrist. When the non-M.D. thinks some medication might be appropriate, he or she discusses it with the M.D. who usually interviews the patient before writing the prescription. To monitor the e§ectiveness of the medication, the M.D. usually has monthly or more regular contact with the patient. e typical involvement of a crisis negotiator with a psychiatrist will usually involve the issue of a prescription or medication the subject has not been taking. e expression, “He is o§ his meds,” is familiar to law enforcement and correctional sta§. Most psychiatrists are members of the American Psychiatric Association (APA). ey publish the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) of the APA. is work, the mental health equivalent of the penal code, is now in its fourth iteration. I will discuss this book later in this chapter.
