Psych vs Neuro (esp research)

[tr]

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Title of the thread says it all, I guess.

Would anyone here care to weigh in on the respective merits of the psych vs the neuro residency?


Also, if anyone has information on the availability of funding and time for research, as well as the research areas normally explored, by each type of specialist, I'd be eager to hear about that as well.

 

[purpledoc]

They are incredibly different. It's like comparing dermatology with cardiology. I think you'll have to be a bit more specific in terms of what things you're interested in, or what you'd like to know.

 

[tr]

I guess I would be most interested in hearing from people who were deciding between the two, and what factors they took into consideration.

- What are the most typical 'bread and butter' patients for each? (I guess stroke for neuro and depression for psych? but is this pretty invariant or does it depend significantly on the location and program?)

- How long is the residency? What is each year spent doing? (Is there a year of medicine at the beginning for each, or is this also dependent on the program?)

- What are the other residents like? What is the 'typical personality' for each specialty?

- What is the general flavor of the residency? (I know working hours are longer for neuro than for psych in general; does this hold true all the way through the residency or only during internship? Does it vary significantly from program to program?)

- What opportunities exist for research? How realistic is it to become involved in research as a resident? What research areas are common in each specialty?


I'd be interested in hearing the answers to any of these questions, as well as any other input. Free association is OK. 🙂 Thanks!

 

[monocyte]

Hi tr,

Great question. I am a psych resident, but seriously considered neurology as I enjoyed it in medical school. It is actually possible to combine the two to a significant extent by doing a fellowship in 'neuropsychiatry'. See example below:

http://www.psych.uic.edu/chat/education/residents/neurofellow.htm

I intend to do this as I'm very interested in 'organic' brain disease and like the more concrete aspects of medicine as well as the human interaction involved in psychotherapy/psychiatry.

Note that as a psychiatrist, you can (within reason) 'carve out' a lot of neurology if you decide to take the initiative during residency. The same is of course true for neurologists interested in psychiatry.

As for research, both residencies can allow you to do a lot. It varies from program to program, however. Also, I would imagine it might be easier to get started earlier in psych as the residency is generally less intense than neuro.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

Monocyte

 

[Thewonderer]

The best thing for you to do is to experience both psychiatry and neurology during medical school and then decide. They are so different.

Both spend a lot of time with their patients but psych MD spends 30 minutes talking to the patient while neurologist spend 30 minutes during a hands-on neuro exam. Which one do you like better? Neurologists also deal with pts with great disabilities (post-stroke, neuropathy, etc.) while psychiatrists deal with patients are are relatively healthy physically (many pts need to be medically cleared before seeing psychiatrists). so the state that the pts are in are also different.

you should have a clear preference after you have done your rotations.