There is a high incidence of psychiatric problems in the medical community. Physicians may have a difficult time finding help. There are a variety of reasons for this, the most common of which is that the sources of help may all involve people the physician knows personally.
In BC we have something called the "physician health program", which is a resource especially for physicians in need of help. Here is the website:
http://www.physicianhealth.com/
Hopefully other communities have similar programs.
If a hospital admission is needed, it may be desired to arrange this in a different place, if privacy or confidentiality issues are major concerns.
Showing posts with label Finding Help. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Finding Help. Show all posts
Friday, March 6, 2009
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Finding Help
It can be hard to find help that suits you well.
Individuals seeking help sometimes ask me directly if I will see them. At this point, I am not able to see very many new patients; those new patients I do see have often been waiting a very long time, and because I work as part of the staff in a university clinic, I need to restrict new assessments or psychiatric follow-up to the university student population.
Here is some general advice about finding psychiatric care in the Vancouver area (maybe some of these suggestions could apply to other parts of the world too):
1) Find a primary care physician you are comfortable with. Many gp's (general practice physicians) are at least as capable as a great many psychiatrists, in terms of providing good, thorough, compassionate psychiatric care. A good gp should be a good listener, have a good knowledge of psychiatric conditions, be comfortable dealing with psychiatric problems, and be comfortable with some psychotherapy principles as well as with medications.
It can be hard to find a gp you are comfortable with. But it is probably a much easier task in most cases than finding a psychiatrist or other therapist.
2) Be familiar with other mental health resources in the community. In Vancouver this would include the community mental health teams and specialty clinics such as the Mood Disorders Clinic. Some of these resources may not offer follow-up but could at least offer some advice to help you and your gp move on with some new therapeutic ideas.
Links:
http://www.vch.ca/mood/
http://www.vch.ca/psychiatry/adc.htm
http://www.vch.ca/community/mental_health.htm
http://www.vch.ca/psychiatry/opp.htm
3) Be well-informed yourself, so that you can communicate your problems clearly to any new physician or therapist. If there is a past medical record, it can be helpful to have copies of this information yourself, which can speed up the process of a new person understanding your history.
4) Be open to alternative resources: other types of therapy or counseling outside of the medical or psychiatric system can sometimes be very helpful.
5) Be open to therapeutic ideas that might not necessarily be your first choice. For example, you might be referred to some kind of group therapy program, instead of to a 1-on-1 therapist (sometimes groups are more readily and immediately available). This kind of experience can sometimes be very helpful, and also help you become more connected with other resources. Many people are so insistent on wanting 1-on-1 therapy that they will not consider a group.
6) Be reminded that the hospital emergency rooms are always open, and help is available at any time. In most hospitals a psychiatrist would be available to see you for an urgent or life-threatening problem. Also, most hospitals would have other resources, such as social work, which could be useful to help with other circumstantial difficulties accompanying your symptoms. The emergency room experience can be chaotic and frustrating, though.
More links to some different Vancouver-area resources:
http://www.anxietybc.com/
http://www.heretohelp.bc.ca/
http://www.bcss.org/category/resources/
http://www.mdabc.net./
Individuals seeking help sometimes ask me directly if I will see them. At this point, I am not able to see very many new patients; those new patients I do see have often been waiting a very long time, and because I work as part of the staff in a university clinic, I need to restrict new assessments or psychiatric follow-up to the university student population.
Here is some general advice about finding psychiatric care in the Vancouver area (maybe some of these suggestions could apply to other parts of the world too):
1) Find a primary care physician you are comfortable with. Many gp's (general practice physicians) are at least as capable as a great many psychiatrists, in terms of providing good, thorough, compassionate psychiatric care. A good gp should be a good listener, have a good knowledge of psychiatric conditions, be comfortable dealing with psychiatric problems, and be comfortable with some psychotherapy principles as well as with medications.
It can be hard to find a gp you are comfortable with. But it is probably a much easier task in most cases than finding a psychiatrist or other therapist.
2) Be familiar with other mental health resources in the community. In Vancouver this would include the community mental health teams and specialty clinics such as the Mood Disorders Clinic. Some of these resources may not offer follow-up but could at least offer some advice to help you and your gp move on with some new therapeutic ideas.
Links:
http://www.vch.ca/mood/
http://www.vch.ca/psychiatry/adc.htm
http://www.vch.ca/community/mental_health.htm
http://www.vch.ca/psychiatry/opp.htm
3) Be well-informed yourself, so that you can communicate your problems clearly to any new physician or therapist. If there is a past medical record, it can be helpful to have copies of this information yourself, which can speed up the process of a new person understanding your history.
4) Be open to alternative resources: other types of therapy or counseling outside of the medical or psychiatric system can sometimes be very helpful.
5) Be open to therapeutic ideas that might not necessarily be your first choice. For example, you might be referred to some kind of group therapy program, instead of to a 1-on-1 therapist (sometimes groups are more readily and immediately available). This kind of experience can sometimes be very helpful, and also help you become more connected with other resources. Many people are so insistent on wanting 1-on-1 therapy that they will not consider a group.
6) Be reminded that the hospital emergency rooms are always open, and help is available at any time. In most hospitals a psychiatrist would be available to see you for an urgent or life-threatening problem. Also, most hospitals would have other resources, such as social work, which could be useful to help with other circumstantial difficulties accompanying your symptoms. The emergency room experience can be chaotic and frustrating, though.
More links to some different Vancouver-area resources:
http://www.anxietybc.com/
http://www.heretohelp.bc.ca/
http://www.bcss.org/category/resources/
http://www.mdabc.net./
Monday, July 21, 2008
The Emergency Room
Hospital emergency rooms are always open; emergency help is always available. If you can't make it through the day, or through the hour, and your other resources are not sufficient, you can always be seen and taken care of in the hospital.
There are several points of entry to the hospital system. Sometimes an admission to a psychiatric ward can be arranged in advance, but quite often the entry point is the hospital emergency room.
Emergency rooms are chaotic places. There are a variety of frustrations that one might have to deal with. There may be a long wait to be seen by a physician. There might be a lot of noise, and a lot of upset due to various other emergencies being dealt with. The seats or beds may be physically uncomfortable. You would probably be seen by a variety of different people, and it may be very frustrating and exhausting to have to tell your story several times: first to a triage nurse, then to an emergency physician. If psychiatry is consulted, then there might be a student or resident who would see you next, prior to the actual psychiatrist. Along the way, each interviewer may be different in their level of comfort, thoroughness, or rapport with psychiatric interviewing. You may encounter an interviewer who is tired or impatient.
If you are in a time of urgent emotional distress, these frustrations can be especially hard to deal with. I encourage you to bear with it. At the very least, the emergency room is safe, and it can be the beginning of a powerful, sometimes life-saving therapeutic experience.
Here are two suggestions that can make an emergency room visit a little easier:
1) bring a friend or loved one with you, if possible
2) if you have a doctor, therapist, or psychiatrist, ask him or her to call or fax the emergency room, to better inform them about you in advance. This can often make a big difference, and help the process proceed more smoothly.
There are several points of entry to the hospital system. Sometimes an admission to a psychiatric ward can be arranged in advance, but quite often the entry point is the hospital emergency room.
Emergency rooms are chaotic places. There are a variety of frustrations that one might have to deal with. There may be a long wait to be seen by a physician. There might be a lot of noise, and a lot of upset due to various other emergencies being dealt with. The seats or beds may be physically uncomfortable. You would probably be seen by a variety of different people, and it may be very frustrating and exhausting to have to tell your story several times: first to a triage nurse, then to an emergency physician. If psychiatry is consulted, then there might be a student or resident who would see you next, prior to the actual psychiatrist. Along the way, each interviewer may be different in their level of comfort, thoroughness, or rapport with psychiatric interviewing. You may encounter an interviewer who is tired or impatient.
If you are in a time of urgent emotional distress, these frustrations can be especially hard to deal with. I encourage you to bear with it. At the very least, the emergency room is safe, and it can be the beginning of a powerful, sometimes life-saving therapeutic experience.
Here are two suggestions that can make an emergency room visit a little easier:
1) bring a friend or loved one with you, if possible
2) if you have a doctor, therapist, or psychiatrist, ask him or her to call or fax the emergency room, to better inform them about you in advance. This can often make a big difference, and help the process proceed more smoothly.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Links to Vancouver community resources
The Red Book Online is a good collection of community services for Vancouver; hopefully other communities have similar sites:
http://www2.vpl.vancouver.bc.ca/
DBs/Redbook/htmlPgs/home.html
Here's a link to Vancouver community centres; you can find the various programs and services they offer:
http://vancouver.ca/parks/rec/programs/refunds.htm
Here's a link to other classes & programs through the Vancouver school board:
http://www.continuinged.ca/nr/vsb/cie/session.asp
Here's a link to the Vancouver Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting schedule:
http://www.vancouveraa.ca/directory.pdf
Here's a link to Volunteer Vancouver (a place where you can search for volunteer opportunities):
http://www.volunteervancouver.ca/volunteering/search.asp
http://www2.vpl.vancouver.bc.ca/
DBs/Redbook/htmlPgs/home.html
Here's a link to Vancouver community centres; you can find the various programs and services they offer:
http://vancouver.ca/parks/rec/programs/refunds.htm
Here's a link to other classes & programs through the Vancouver school board:
http://www.continuinged.ca/nr/vsb/cie/session.asp
Here's a link to the Vancouver Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting schedule:
http://www.vancouveraa.ca/directory.pdf
Here's a link to Volunteer Vancouver (a place where you can search for volunteer opportunities):
http://www.volunteervancouver.ca/volunteering/search.asp
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