Does It Bother You?

[Dr Noodle]

What bothers me about psychiatry is that I want to use my medical degree and knowledge to help those in third world countries (esp. India), those suffering in their countries for political reasons, etc.... and I am not sure how significant (looking at the bigger picture) psychiatry would be for those who are suffering physically due to a lack of immunisations, proper healthy diets and broken arms and legs...

I am not for one second saying that psychiatry is useless, because I know it isn't. And I am not saying that those in third world countries and those suffering from the effects of war are not mentally affected or anything, because I know they would be... I just honestly don't know how much of a priority psychiatry would be for active, hands-on help...

... am I making any sense? :/

I guess it comes down to your interests and how you would want to help, at the end of the day... but if anyone has any thoughts on this, it'd be much appreciated!

I don't quite get what you're saying...surely, if possible, a holistic approach would be the best, treat mind and body as mental health can have a direct effect on physical health?? I don't see how that changes just because you're in a third world country. Say you are treating children who watched their parents murdered in front of them, would there be an element of psychiatry needed as part of their care or is this where psychology comes in and I'm mixing up the two? Apologies if I've misunderstood you.

[never_too_late]

I am actually astounded by the number of people on this thread that are willing to argue strong opinions without any basic experience of the field! Surely as future doctors you should be investigating the realities before drawing any conclusions...

I've worked in Mental Health for over a year now, the consultants I've observed do rely heavily on their experience and that of their colleagues and teams. But this is no different to any other medical discipline. There is a hell of a lot wrong with the system in mental health but most of this is down to chronic underfunding and lack of care beds and adequate resources, not the perceived lack of the 'golden EBM' In fact as Andy2 pointed out above, there is some significant knowledge about the processes of the pathology of mental illness- I would however argue against the use of the phrase 'atypical antipsychotics- see: The spurious advance of antipsychotic drug therapy, Tyrer and Kendall, The Lancet, 373, 9657.

I admire the ambition to work in a '3rd world country' but don't dismiss the impact of mental ill-health,

" Hey, I know exactly what you're trying to get at! In 3rd world countries when people are dying, mental illnesses (that are treated with even more skepticism in those countries) are the bottom of the list when it comes to healthcare."

Mental Health exists in these countries and those that suffer from these diseases are left to rot in institutions comparable to 19th century British Asylums, if you are serious about helping make an impact in these countries, aiding development and education, then surely any area of serious paucity deserves attention?
I want to work abroad eventually to but it is not for the lack of need that I would not go into mental health but for the subtle nuances within communication that are so vital to it's success and without significant knowledge of the first language of your patient I would not want to venture on to try and help those suffering...

[Gizmo says -]

on the other 'and, a queue of peeple (trying to get benefits and free accom) in your gp waiting area by faking illness is ardly an appealing prospect on a morning for a general practitioner.

[elmiradoc2005]

What do u mean Gizmo? u r very strange person !!! God knows how u v become a doctor, u v problem with everything, human race, gender, different med schools, mature students and .......... u need some counselling

[Gizmo says -]

cheers. whats my problem wif gender and the uman race then.

enlighten me, unless you've invented that.

[alex MD]

Why do all the aspiring psychiatrists on here moan about "their" profession being 'stigmatised'. Christ, no wonder why it's not making huge advances if the doctors themselves are nutters...

[Henrik88]

I have just read "Change your life, Change your Brain" by Dr. Daniel Amen, it has been a thoroughly delightful read and really changed my understanding of mental state and enlightened me thoroughly.

This book has alot of SPECT-scans, or Blood-flow scans if you will, and it would seem that disorders in the brain are not a matter of weak will or any other likewise weak assumption, it is a practical changed activity in the brain, the SPECT-scans seem to make the point that certain areas malfunctioning will cause the areas they govern to malfunction thus resulting in mental disease.

It was an eye-opener for me to accept how body/mind is one how an abnormal physical body (brain) will lead to abnormal psyche, and that there are plenty of healing interventions.

So it seems to me that there is already emerging science in the field of Psychiatry.

Anyone else have read this book or studied the SPECT scans because i have been amazed, it has help me gain a very practical understanding of illnesses that my mother has fought, and to some degree all human beings will encounter.

This book only confirmed my conviction, the most important organ is the brain, Psychiatry is keeping this organ healthy, it is hard but things that are worth doing are hard, applying science to what is possibly the most complicated organ in the human body is not easy, so it is easy for nay-sayers to dismiss, but harder to do. Its a daunting task but with amazing potential i find it by far to be the most interesting thing i have stumpled upon until now and i will look forward to study the body/mind-connection as it is called.

[markyc]

Hmm maybe you should look at an alternative bit of reading to make your decision outside of your specialism, if you've researched both areas then only you will know which one is the right move :-)

[Henrik88]

I think with the amazing change of brain scanning techniques and evermore impressive revelations on the brain's areas that psychiatry will be revolutionized entirely and become of amazing support, i hope so.