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Deacon
Student
Elk River, Minnesota
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How rewarding do you find psychiatry as a job?
How do rewarding is psychiatry for the doctor? There is the aspect of helping others that can be incredibly rewarding to do, but what other parts of the job are rewarding or beneficial for both doctor and patient?
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Gregory Barclay, M.D., DLFAPA, FASAP
Psychiatrist
26
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Wilmington, Delaware
Updated
Gregory’s Answer
Deacon,
Having been a psychiatrist for over 35 years, I think I can answer your question. I have had a very rewarding career, first as a psychiatrist in the US Navy, then in various practice settings for many years, and more recently as a psychiatrist working as an administrative physician in a Medicaid Health Plan assuring that services to seriously ill and disabled individuals with psychiatric problems are adequately cared for.
What I have found rewarding about my work has been the opportunity to meet people who are suffering and often in dire need of assistance, enter their "inner world", which is for many a sacred space that they don't share readily but do so with you if you demonstrate that you are a caring, competent, and trustworthy professional, and be able to utilize all the tools at my disposal to help them move to a place of less distress and more health. For some people, it means meeting them at a point where they are ready to end their life and pulling them back from the ledge to a space where we can improve the way they are feeling and thinking sufficiently that they are no longer suicidal. So, while the work can be stressful and challenging mentally, it can be and usually is very rewarding for a person who is interested in the workings of the brain and mind.
What I have liked about being a psychiatrist, and what has been rewarding to me as well, has been the opportunity to work with patients in therapy, doing "whole person" care. These days, many psychiatrists either prefer or are required by others with whom they work or are employed to be "medication only" doctors, leaving therapy to others. While I was able to do that in various jobs I had, I always preferred instead to work with patients as their therapist as well as their medication doctor, if we even used medication (and when I worked with teenagers and college students, it was often more therapy and family therapy than it was medication therapy). I heard from many patients over the years how rewarding it was for them to work with me instead of in an arrangement where they worked with a therapist (who often is not in communication with the psychiatrist) while seeing the psychiatrist "for medication only". Being a psychiatrist allows you to choose how you want to practice and if becoming a good therapist interests you as well as being an expert on who the brain works and what medication can do and can't do, you can easily obtain advanced supervision in conducting therapy while you are a resident. Don't let people tell you otherwise.
In summary, being able to be a special person with the privilege (and it really is a privilege) to enter the private world of someone else as a helper and healer, and seeing them benefit from treatment and go on with their lives is immensely rewarding to me and I think would be to you as a future psychiatrist. And as I said, your patients will also find your approach to them, as a caring and skilled professional who is compassionate and empathetic (all skills you can work on and master in coming years) to be a great reward to them.
You asked about other parts of the job that are rewarding. For me, there have been many rewards. I have had the opportunity to work with many doctors and mental health professionals as a colleague and to mentor many of them. As a psychiatrist you are often considered a leader of a team of professionals, so knowing about leadership and how to inspire and encourage others is very important to your success in this role and the rewards that come with it. I have also found the opportunity to be an expert witness in court cases and, in my current role, to be a key member in the leadership of a large health plan serving Medicaid Members, to be quite rewarding and wouldn't have had those opportunities had I not been a psychiatrist. That is the beauty of it. As a psychiatrist, you can develop your own place in the system to do and practice in a way that is rewarding and helps others, not just patients. Also, while psychiatrists are certainly not at the top of the ladder when it comes to pay compared to other doctors, none of them are starving either. Most of us aren't in it for the money though as you can make money doing a lot of other things that require a lot less time and effort than going to medical school and residency!
That's a lot to think about but your question suggests you are a very deep thinker and a smart person wanting lots of information. Hope this helps to get you started!
Having been a psychiatrist for over 35 years, I think I can answer your question. I have had a very rewarding career, first as a psychiatrist in the US Navy, then in various practice settings for many years, and more recently as a psychiatrist working as an administrative physician in a Medicaid Health Plan assuring that services to seriously ill and disabled individuals with psychiatric problems are adequately cared for.
What I have found rewarding about my work has been the opportunity to meet people who are suffering and often in dire need of assistance, enter their "inner world", which is for many a sacred space that they don't share readily but do so with you if you demonstrate that you are a caring, competent, and trustworthy professional, and be able to utilize all the tools at my disposal to help them move to a place of less distress and more health. For some people, it means meeting them at a point where they are ready to end their life and pulling them back from the ledge to a space where we can improve the way they are feeling and thinking sufficiently that they are no longer suicidal. So, while the work can be stressful and challenging mentally, it can be and usually is very rewarding for a person who is interested in the workings of the brain and mind.
What I have liked about being a psychiatrist, and what has been rewarding to me as well, has been the opportunity to work with patients in therapy, doing "whole person" care. These days, many psychiatrists either prefer or are required by others with whom they work or are employed to be "medication only" doctors, leaving therapy to others. While I was able to do that in various jobs I had, I always preferred instead to work with patients as their therapist as well as their medication doctor, if we even used medication (and when I worked with teenagers and college students, it was often more therapy and family therapy than it was medication therapy). I heard from many patients over the years how rewarding it was for them to work with me instead of in an arrangement where they worked with a therapist (who often is not in communication with the psychiatrist) while seeing the psychiatrist "for medication only". Being a psychiatrist allows you to choose how you want to practice and if becoming a good therapist interests you as well as being an expert on who the brain works and what medication can do and can't do, you can easily obtain advanced supervision in conducting therapy while you are a resident. Don't let people tell you otherwise.
In summary, being able to be a special person with the privilege (and it really is a privilege) to enter the private world of someone else as a helper and healer, and seeing them benefit from treatment and go on with their lives is immensely rewarding to me and I think would be to you as a future psychiatrist. And as I said, your patients will also find your approach to them, as a caring and skilled professional who is compassionate and empathetic (all skills you can work on and master in coming years) to be a great reward to them.
You asked about other parts of the job that are rewarding. For me, there have been many rewards. I have had the opportunity to work with many doctors and mental health professionals as a colleague and to mentor many of them. As a psychiatrist you are often considered a leader of a team of professionals, so knowing about leadership and how to inspire and encourage others is very important to your success in this role and the rewards that come with it. I have also found the opportunity to be an expert witness in court cases and, in my current role, to be a key member in the leadership of a large health plan serving Medicaid Members, to be quite rewarding and wouldn't have had those opportunities had I not been a psychiatrist. That is the beauty of it. As a psychiatrist, you can develop your own place in the system to do and practice in a way that is rewarding and helps others, not just patients. Also, while psychiatrists are certainly not at the top of the ladder when it comes to pay compared to other doctors, none of them are starving either. Most of us aren't in it for the money though as you can make money doing a lot of other things that require a lot less time and effort than going to medical school and residency!
That's a lot to think about but your question suggests you are a very deep thinker and a smart person wanting lots of information. Hope this helps to get you started!