Pearls
Pearls
From smiling to smizing: Assessing the affect of a patient wearing a mask
Although the guidelines for masking in hospitals and other health care settings have been revised and face masks are no longer mandatory, it is...
Pearls
When a patient wants to stop taking their antipsychotic: Be ‘A SPORT’
For patients with schizophrenia, adherence to antipsychotic treatment reduces the rate of relapse of psychosis, lowers the rate of...
Pearls
Tips for efficient night shift work in a psychiatric ED
Attending psychiatrists who work night shift in a psychiatric emergency department (ED) or medical ED require a different set of skills than when...
Pearls
Clonidine: Off-label uses in pediatric patients
Clonidine is a centrally acting alpha-2 agonist originally developed for treating hypertension.
Pearls
Intranasal esketamine: A primer
Intranasal esketamine is an FDA-approved ketamine molecule indicated for use together with an oral antidepressant for treatment-resistant...
Pearls
Prodromal symptoms of schizophrenia: What to look for
Schizophrenia is characterized by psychotic symptoms that typically follow a prodromal period of premonitory signs and symptoms that appear before...
Pearls
Scurvy in psychiatric patients: An easy-to-miss diagnosis
T wo years ago, I cared for Ms. L, a woman in her late 40s who had a history of generalized anxiety disorder and major depressive disorder. Unable...
Pearls
Breast cancer screening in women receiving antipsychotics
Women with severe mental illness (SMI) are more likely to develop breast cancer and often have more advanced stages of breast cancer when it is...
Pearls
Psychotropic medications for chronic pain
The opioid crisis presents a need to consider alternative options for treating chronic pain.
Pearls
A gender primer for psychiatrists
Psychiatrists have a long tradition of supporting LGBTQAI+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, asexual, intersex, and others...
Pearls
Medical record documentation: What to do, and what to avoid
Medical record documentation serves as a reminder of previous discussions with patients and what happened during their visits, a reimbursement...