Ψ

I learned that Ψ is a quick abbreviation (at least at SFGH) for psychiatry. My experience in this four week rotation was fantastic. Like family medicine, I did not go in with expectations that I would love it, but I did. My attendings and resident really made the experience. They spent a remarkable amount of time teaching me, watching me interview, helping me work up a plan for my patients. Perhaps because they are psychiatrists, they kept asking me how my experience was, whether I was learning and meeting my expectations, and whether I had too many or too few patients. The team cohered well and I think that makes a huge difference. I also really liked the consult-liaison role, and it was hard to say goodbye to my patients on my last day. I was able to spend a lot of time learning about their lives, desires, and problems. I felt that I got a broad spectrum view of psychiatric diseases.

As a specialty, psychiatry has gone up on my list, mostly because consult Ψ is not isolated from the rest of medicine. I like having more time with patients, working on a therapeutic relationship, and being able to connect with people other physicians don't have time to deal with. I think the patient population really needs advocates and that's important to me. Unfortunately, Ψ has this feel of voodoo; we don't know how our drugs work or how diseases come about. This may change in the future. Psych is also the least hands-on of specialties. So although it has gone up on the list, it's not at the top.