Department of Psychiatry
Core Psychiatry Rotation and Senior Elective Clerkships
Contact: Leticia Rasillo, Psychiatry Residency Program Coordinator
Telephone: (480) 344-2028
Fax: (480) 344-2157
E-mail: Leticia_rasillo@medprodoctors.com
Third Year Medical Student Core Psychiatry Rotation
Second Year Physician Assistant Psychiatry Rotation:
Thank you for our interest in the clinical clerkships available for medical students in the Department of Psychiatry at Maricopa Medical Center and Desert Vista Behavioral Health. The rotation duration is a minimum of 4 weeks and a maximum of 8 weeks (two rotations) per academic year.
The major strengths of the Psychiatry rotations at Maricopa Medical Center include the tremendous patient diversity and pathology, the strong didactic program and the active, accessible teaching staff. Additionally, students have the unique opportunity to participate in hands-on patient care. Specifically, students function as an integral member of the healthcare team, assuming responsibilities commensurate with their level of training and under the direct supervision of full-time faculty.
There are weekly conferences covering a variety of topics in Psychiatry. Students join the Psychiatry interns for conferences all day Wednesdays at the Desert Vista campus. There is also a lecture given to students by the Psychiatry Residents from 2:00 - 3:00 pm on Thursdays also at the Desert Vista Campus.
The working environment is informal and concentrates on practical aspects of patient management with strong emphasis on solving problems by proper interpretation of clinical data and the sound application of general medical principles.
Please click on the following links for:
Clinical rotations involve primary responsibility for direct patient care and are an excellent preparation for the internship year. The student functions as a "sub-intern," becoming an integral and active member of a team under direct faculty supervision. The student will work-up and follow patients, participate in daily attending rounds, perform procedures and learn the basic mechanics of managing a psychiatric hospital service.
Core Psychiatry Rotations - As a 3rd year medical student, only Inpatient General Psychiatry is available to you.
Senior Electives – As a 4th year medical student, electives available are:
- General Inpatient Psychiatry with choice of focus on General Adult or Geriatric Psychiatry
- Consultation / Liaison Psychiatry
Inpatient Services
Director, Medical Student Education: Joanna Kowalik, MD
Psychiatric Annex Faculty: Esad Boskailo, MD; Traci Wherry, MD; Samuel Hand, MD; Tonja Johnson, MD; Marta Bunuel, MD
Desert Vista Behavioral Health Faculty: Paul Berkowitz, MD; Shabnam Sood, MD; Andrew Parker, DO; Michael Hughes, MD; Michael Sweeney, MD; Domiciano Santos, MD; Lydia Torio, MD
Length of Time: Min 4 weeks – Max 8 weeks
Offered: Year-round
Maximum enrollment: 8
Patient Care: Yes
Core Requirement / Elective
Description: Psychiatric Center inpatient services include eight locked inpatient units which provide psychiatric services to a wide range of patients. Five of the adult general psychiatric units are located at the Desert Vista campus. Two additional general psychiatric units and a combined special needs/general medicine unit are located at the Annex campus. Also available is a voluntary inpatient unit in Desert Vista. The majority of patients on all of the units are involuntarily hospitalized, and treatment is generally intensive and brief. The average length of stay on the adult units is 10 - 14 days. The units average over 2,300 admissions per year. Each unit is well-staffed with two to three staff psychiatrists and psychiatric residents. The medical student on these services would work from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.
Goals: Working under the supervision of a staff psychiatrist, the medical student would:
- Learn to interview psychiatric inpatients
- Learn to do a thorough psychiatric history and mental status examination
- Learn to diagnose according to DSM-IV-TR
- Learn to formulate an appropriate treatment plan utilizing a bio-psycho-social format
- Learn about the use of anti-psychotic, anti-anxiety, mood stabilizing and antidepressant drugs
- Learn about the interface between psychiatry and primary care medicine.
- Gain an understanding of the management of acutely ill and potentially dangerous patients.
- Observe and understand the legal process necessary when assignment of a court order for psychiatric treatment is warranted.
Call Schedule:
- Students are not required to stay overnight for call
Format: The medical student will receive regular supervision on the unit to which he/she is assigned and will function as an integral part of a multi-disciplinary treatment team.
The student will interact with residents and faculty during therapeutic rounds on a daily basis. The student will participate in assessment and treating planning activities.
Didactic instruction geared specifically for students is provided for a variety of topics.
Evaluation Methods: Students will be evaluated by direct observation of the involved faculty and will be assessed on knowledge, clinical skills and application of information learned during the rotation.
Psychiatric Consultation Service
Faculty: Maria-Jesus Bailon, M.D.
Length of time: Min 4 weeks – Max 8 weeks
Offered: Year round
Maximum Enrollment: 1
Patient Care: Yes
Elective
Description: The Psychiatric Consultation Service provides over 800 consults per year to the Maricopa Medical Center. Consultations are requested by all services and allow the student to evaluate hospitalized patients for psychiatric illnesses, competency, parenting capability and issues of suicidality and/or lethality. The student would function as a member of the Consultation team comprised of the attending and two to three psychiatric and/or family medicine residents. Particular emphasis is placed on psychosomatic issues and the interface between physical and mental illnesses. The medical student would work Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.
Goals: The student will gain an understanding of the role of consultation-liaison psychiatry; how to do a psychiatric assessment in a general hospital setting; how to develop a meaningful differential diagnosis; and how to develop a treatment plan that can be incorporated into the care of a hospitalized medical patient.
Format: The student will participate as part of a busy consultation team with regular supervision by both attending and resident. The student will have adequate time to complete independent assessments of inpatients and to develop a formulation and treatment plan under supervision. Directed readings, individualized supervision and teaching rounds are utilized for educational proposes.
Evaluation Methods: Students will be evaluated regularly by direct observation of the faculty and will be assessed on knowledge, clinical skills and the application of information learned during rotation
Additional Information:
- All of our rotations begin on any Monday and end on Friday, four to eight weeks later.
- We allow up to three days of excused absences per rotation. If you know in advance that you will require more than three days away from the service, please let us know.
- Three free meals a day in employee cafeteria with ID
- Free parking.
- Educational materials provided.
- Students are welcome to attend morning report and resident conferences
- Student Lectures provided weekly, every Thursday afternoon at Desert Vista Campus.
- 24 hour access to hospital library
- Opportunity to observe an intake for one day at the Child & Adolescent Outpatient Clinic.
- Opportunity to observe an ECT (Electro Convulsive Therapy) procedure.
If you would like any additional information or have any questions about individual rotations and availability, please do not hesitate to contact Leticia Rasillo, Residency Coordinator, at (480) 344-2028 or by e-mail to Leticia_rasillo@medprodoctors.com.
Medical Student Comments
- Dr. Pynn is a patient and extremely knowledgeable preceptor who is very well read, bilingual, trained and certified in childhood and adult psychiatry, as well as experienced in family psychiatry, and kind and caring on top of it all. She displays the utmost respect toward her patients though they are normally very low functioning and sometimes troublesome. Her interview skills are absolutely top notch, and there is much to be learned during each patient encounter. She makes progress in impossible patients. It is a treat to see her work.
- Great rotation, lots of interesting patients and pathology
- Great rotation. A lot of interesting patients. Very kind staff
- Dr. Boskailo is a great teacher, learned a lot from him. All the residents are really nice also.
- Drs. Hughes and Nguyen were exceptional! Dr Nguyen worked with me daily on pharmacology, and gave me an opportunity to give my opinions. She also bestowed a great deal of responsibility on me, which helped me to take the learning process on actively. Dr Hughes is one o the most intelligent and friendly people you’ll ever meet. I learned a great deal about interpreting the patients from him, and how that can be done without having to do a great deal of talking. As preceptors I would continue these types of things, it made for a great experience!
- This was definitely the best rotation I had. The teamwork for each patient’s case was excellent with great staff members all around. This includes the doctors, residents, nurses, social workers and unit staff. I can tell there are people that really care and that will make or break any rotation. It was a great learning experience because I felt I was a part of this wonderful team. I look forward to the privilege of rotating there in my fourth year again. Thank you.
- Dr. Sood was a great preceptor. She was always willing to spend extra time teaching and answering questions. She always looked out for the best interest of her patients.
- Thanks for the great rotation”
- Thank you Dr. Parker – I really appreciate your insights and valuable tips in regards to managing psych patients.
- This was a FANTASTIC rotation! I cannot say enough good things about it!
- I have not considered Psychiatry as a residency possibility before this rotation. Now I am definitely considering it. Thank you for such a great rotation!
- Dr. Berkowitz was an excellent preceptor who allowed me to take an active role in patient care and my own learning. The staff was also very nice and helpful. Overall, I really enjoyed Desert Vista and the exposure to Psychiatry.
- This was a fantastic rotation. I had never considered psychiatry as a career option for me but this rotation has made it a real possibility. The exposure to a wide variety of psychiatric disorders was exceptional, and all of the attending, residents, and staff were eager to teach. They made me feel very comfortable and allowed me to function as a part of the team….please pass along my thanks to everyone for such a great experience.
- I loved the rotation and my perception of psychiatry widened! I would recommend this experience highly to anyone.
Last updated on
May 3, 2010
Family Violence