MEL 8611: Acting Internship in Psychiatry: Inpatient Psychiatry LVHN 15-16

Prior approval of Drs. Karper, Cavorsi, Lerman, and Norris required at least four months prior to the start of the elective.

This elective is designed to provide advanced clinical and didactic training in inpatient psychiatry. Students will participate as a “sub-intern” on an inpatient psychiatric ward. Students are expected to have a small case load of patients that they actively manage taking on primary responsibility for the patient’s care in conjunction with the supervising faculty. Students will perform the history and physical for patients being admitted to the hospital and follow the patient on a daily throughout the hospital course. Students will learn to construct a biopsychosocial formulation of the patient’s presenting problems along with providing acute, intense biological, psychocological and social interventions during the hospitalization. Students will also learn to compose discharge summaries. Close supervision, seminars, and independent study will complement the clinical activities.

Objectives

1. Develop a more in depth understanding of psychopathology
2. Become more skilled in the use of psychotropic medication
3. Gain a greater familiarity with a variety of psychotherapy modalities including individual, group, and family psychotherapy
4. Become more skilled in the interviewing of psychiatric patients

Evaluation

The supervising faculty will evaluate the student’s clinical performance according to the elective objectives.

The student will conduct a 10 minute presentation on a relevant topic of interest.

The student will submit two discharge summaries for review by faculty.