Category: Psychiatry

  • Exercise or Weaponize My Privilege?

    Exercise or Weaponize My Privilege?

    Back in November 2022, while on our way to the Stanley Museum of Art, we saw the two murals on the East Burlington Street Parking Ramp. It was the first time we saw them in person although photos were available last fall. The Little Village article published an article about them on September 30, 2021.…

  • More Thoughts on Physicians Going on Strike

    More Thoughts on Physicians Going on Strike

    I noticed Dr. H. Steven Moffic, MD had written another article in Psychiatric Times asking whether it’s time for psychiatrists to consider going on strike. Often the issue triggering discussions about this is the rising prevalence of physician burnout. I’ve already given my personal opinion about physicians going on strike and the short answer is…

  • MLK Week Redux for the New University of Iowa Psychiatry Fellows

    MLK Week Redux for the New University of Iowa Psychiatry Fellows

    I discovered the University of Iowa Dept of Psychiatry had a very successful match, filling key residency slots in Child Psychiatry, Addiction Medicine, and Consultation-Liaison fellowships. Congratulations! That’s a big reason to celebrate. This reminds me of my role as a teacher. I retired from the department two and a half years ago. But I’ll…

  • An Old Post on Breaking Bad News

    An Old Post on Breaking Bad News

    I’m reposting a piece about a sense of humor and breaking bad news to patients I first wrote for my old blog, The Practical Psychosomaticist about a dozen years ago. I still believe it’s relevant today. The excerpt from Mark Twain is priceless. Because it was published before 1923 (See Mark Twain’s Sketches, published in…

  • Giving Credit Where Credit is Due

    Giving Credit Where Credit is Due

    Here’s another vintage post from around a decade ago after my former Psychiatry Dept chairperson, Dr. Robert G. Robinson and I published our book, Psychosomatic Medicine: An Introduction to Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry” in 2010. Blog: Who Gets The Credit? When I think about peak moments, I remember this guy back in junior high school who decided…

  • Blast from the Past Blog

    Blast from the Past Blog

    I thought I’d re-post something from my previous blog, The Practical Psychosomaticist, which I cancelled several years ago. The title is “Face Time versus Facebook.” I sound really old in it although it appeared in 2011. I’m a little more comfortable with the concept of social media nowadays and, despite how ignorant I was back…

  • Factitious Disorder and Civil Commitment

    Factitious Disorder and Civil Commitment

    Similar to my previous post on the role of civil commitment and catatonia, I’d like to share my thoughts on what little is known about Factitious Disorder and civil commitment. There is not much to say, in brief. In fact, many writers can find a lot to say about the other interesting clinical features of…

  • Congratulations to Paul Thisayakorn, MD!

    Congratulations to Paul Thisayakorn, MD!

    I got a wonderful holiday greeting from one of my favorite past residents, Paul Thisayakorn, MD. He’s running a top-notch Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry (CL-P) Service and a brand-new C-L Fellowship in Thailand. I could not be more excited for him and his family. His wife, Bow, runs the Palliative Care Service. He and Bow answered our…

  • University of Iowa Psychiatry Residents Get Shout Outs

    University of Iowa Psychiatry Residents Get Shout Outs

    Recently, University of Iowa psychiatry residents worked hard enough to get shout outs. One of them was exemplary performance on the consultation and emergency room service. The service was following over two dozen inpatients and received 15 consultation requests in a day. This is a staggering number and the resident on the service did the…

  • Intranasal Esketamine for Major Depression Available at University of Hospitals & Clinics Department of Psychiatry

    Intranasal Esketamine for Major Depression Available at University of Hospitals & Clinics Department of Psychiatry

    Learn about the use of intranasal Esketamine for Major Depressive Disorder at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics here.