A psychiatrist is a doctor with the ability to prescribe medication; therefore, he must have a Doctoral degree in Medicine. However, the medical treatment is focused on severe psychological ailments such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, dissociative identity disorder and severe depression. Oftentimes, talk therapy is prescribed and administered by the psychiatrist in order to find the symptoms and discern the best possible medications to help the patient. Psychiatrists are also referred to by psychologists and other mental health professionals dealing with patients that need medication.
The path for a psychiatrist's doctoral degree begins with undergraduate school, where future students major in degrees with lab requirements such as chemistry or biology. Some students pursue pre-med degrees. Others also take introductory courses in psychology to learn the different mental health disorders.
Although psychiatric treatment is psychologically-centered, psychiatrists must be knowledgeable in all areas of medicine because some medications may affect other body systems. Essentially, they are treated as future medical doctors. With a good undergrad GPA, future psychiatrists then apply for med school where they undergo four years of training in anatomy, biology and immunology courses.
Once med school is completed, students enter a four-year psychiatric residency in a hospital setting. Under direct supervision, they begin to treat psychiatric patients and gain valuable experience. Even if psychiatric medications are prescribed for the same diagnoses, they have different effects on people. Residency training exposes future psychiatrists to these possibilities before possibly moving onto fellowship.
To register for medical board examinations, some boards require fellowship training. Fellowship training allows psychiatric students to specialize their treatment areas. For example, emergency psychiatric treatment involves treating patients exhibiting acute symptoms that put them in immediate danger to themselves or others, while child psychiatry focuses on severe mental health disorders in children.