The three main differences between psychiatrists and psychologists are:

1. Psychiatrists are medical doctors, psychologists are not.
2. Psychiatrists diagnose illness, manage treatment and provide a range of therapies for complex and serious mental illness. Psychologists focus on providing psychotherapy (talk therapy) to help patients.
3. Psychiatrists can prescribe medication, psychologists can’t.

Both psychiatrists and psychologists understand how the brain works, our emotions, feelings and thoughts. Both can treat mental illness with psychological treatments (talking therapies). However, psychiatrists attend medical college and become medical doctors before doing specialist training in mental health. Because they are doctors, psychiatrists understand the links between mental and physical problems.

Training

Psychiatrists are medical doctors with at least 9 years of training – usually more. They first study M.B.B.S for 6 years and then complete at least 3 years training (M.D) in the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness.

Clinical Psychologists have at least 6-7 years of university training and supervised experience. They may also hold a Masters or Doctorate level qualification in psychology. If they have a Doctorate (PhD) a psychologist can call themselves ‘Dr’, but they are not medical doctors.

Psychiatrists can provide a wide range of treatments, according to the particular problem and what will work best. These include:

• medication
• general medical care, including checking your physical health and the effects of medication
• psychological treatments
• brain stimulation therapies such as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).

Psychologists focus on providing psychological treatments.

In the context of child and adolescent mental health concerns, it helps to check if your care provider has a specific expertise in child and adolescent psychiatry.

It is always useful to tell the child regarding the visit. Reassure your child that this doctor evaluates a lot of children and would be guiding them in dealing with their school, academic and peer related issues.

If you feel unsure, the parents can make an appointment to see the doctor alone and we can provide suggestions on how to introduce ‘the visit’ to the child.

In our experience, when the visit to the psychiatrist is framed by the parents as a positive measure to help with mental well being and deal with problems, the child is also able to see it that way. Most children are able to open up in one or two sessions as they are made comfortable and rapport is established over time with the doctor.

The initial consultation last for 45 minutes to one hour. The doctor will ask about the present concerns and its effect on one’s life , past history of mental health or physical problems and treatments, details about family members and relationships.

In case of children, information regarding birth and development, schooling, performance and child’s nature is a part of the assessment.  In case of a preschooler, a few minutes will be earmarked for behavioral observation and interaction.

In case of a child or adolescent, if the client is comfortable, the psychiatrist may ask to speak to the person in private.

Following this, the psychiatrist will explain the diagnosis/ problem of the client and possible reasons for the same. He/she may recommend a few assessments/ investigations to confirm. The psychiatrist will enlist the possible treatments such as therapy, medicines or hospitalization if necessary. A plan for follow up will be chalked out.