Texas Psych

[TexPre-Med]

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Is anyone familiar with the Texas Psych programs? Reputation? Ability to send to fellowships? Happiness? etc.?

 

[TexPre-Med]

any takers?

 

[pillion]

The residents in San Antonio seem to like their program. I know of one resident in particular from Texas Tech who thought our program was the best in Texas.

 

[Hurricane]

I'm at UTSW. I ranked it #1 and have no regrets. 🙂

It's a very strong program for research (which is why I wanted to come here, as I;m an MD/PhD research track nerd). But it's also very solid clinically. We rotate at a variety of inpatient sites: the county hospital, 2 private hospitals (including an eating disorders unit), children's, and the VA. And we have a very busy free-standing psych ER. Can't go into a lot of detail about outpatient, since I'm only a PGY2, but there a bunch of varied sites as well, from the resident clinic, the VA, county mental health clinics, college campus clinics, etc. And there is a Psychoanaytic Institute here. And all of the fellowships. The chair (Eric Nestler) is very responsive to residents - he meets with us monthly, listens carefully to our concerns, and actually gets sh** done.

I also interviewed at Baylor, which seemed to be a very strong program clinically, but I didn't much like Houston, and due to the funding rules, they couldn't guarantee more than 50% protected time for research as a PGY4.

 

[TexPre-Med]

I'm at UTSW. I ranked it #1 and have no regrets. 🙂

It's a very strong program for research (which is why I wanted to come here, as I;m an MD/PhD research track nerd). But it's also very solid clinically. We rotate at a variety of inpatient sites: the county hospital, 2 private hospitals (including an eating disorders unit), children's, and the VA. And we have a very busy free-standing psych ER. Can't go into a lot of detail about outpatient, since I'm only a PGY2, but there a bunch of varied sites as well, from the resident clinic, the VA, county mental health clinics, college campus clinics, etc. And there is a Psychoanaytic Institute here. And all of the fellowships. The chair (Eric Nestler) is very responsive to residents - he meets with us monthly, listens carefully to our concerns, and actually gets sh** done.

I also interviewed at Baylor, which seemed to be a very strong program clinically, but I didn't much like Houston, and due to the funding rules, they couldn't guarantee more than 50% protected time for research as a PGY4.

How competitive is UTSW? Do you know what fellowships they offer there? How do you like it so far? Typical day?

 

[Hurricane]

How competitive is UTSW? Do you know what fellowships they offer there? How do you like it so far? Typical day?

I like my program, with the exception of the VA. But this year they cut some of the VA inpatient months, so that makes up for it somewhat 🙂

Anyway, there is no "typical day" because we rotate at a variety of sites. One nice thing is that we have a very busy free-standing psych ER that admits to hospitals all over the city, and while the ER rotation itself is quite busy, it makes call on some of the other inpatient psych months easier since the ER does all the work in the middle of the night for new admissions. In fact, all of our psych call is pager call from home, although now we have to be physically at the VA until 11, so some residents find it easier to just sleep there.

Intern year consists of two months of medicine wards (which is Q5) two months of neuro (which now has a night float so no overnight call), two months of psych ER (12 hour shifts), 1 month of medicine ER (also shifts), 1 medicine elective, one month at Parkland (the county hospital) inpatient psych, two months at the VA inpatient psych, and one month on an eating disorders unit at the private hospital, in which you gain a lot of weight eating "restorative diet" meals with the patients. Second year is all inpatient psych, ER or consults, and you start doing psychotherapy as well. Third year is all outpatient, and fourth year is all elective with the exception of 2 months of consults. Everyone gets a half-day for didactics, and there's a free lunch for all of the residents from various classes to hang out beforehand, which is nice.

I'm currently doing inpatient psych at Parkland, which is interesting because they don't do substance abuse on this unit (don't worry, there is plenty of opportunity for that elsewhere) So you get to see very sick chronic mental illness in kind of a "pure" form, uncomplicated by crack.

And I believe we have all of the fellowships.

Hope this helps.

 

[tennreb]

I like my program, with the exception of the VA. But this year they cut some of the VA inpatient months, so that makes up for it somewhat 🙂

Anyway, there is no "typical day" because we rotate at a variety of sites. One nice thing is that we have a very busy free-standing psych ER that admits to hospitals all over the city, and while the ER rotation itself is quite busy, it makes call on some of the other inpatient psych months easier since the ER does all the work in the middle of the night for new admissions. In fact, all of our psych call is pager call from home, although now we have to be physically at the VA until 11, so some residents find it easier to just sleep there.

Intern year consists of two months of medicine wards (which is Q5) two months of neuro (which now has a night float so no overnight call), two months of psych ER (12 hour shifts), 1 month of medicine ER (also shifts), 1 medicine elective, one month at Parkland (the county hospital) inpatient psych, two months at the VA inpatient psych, and one month on an eating disorders unit at the private hospital, in which you gain a lot of weight eating "restorative diet" meals with the patients. Second year is all inpatient psych, ER or consults, and you start doing psychotherapy as well. Third year is all outpatient, and fourth year is all elective with the exception of 2 months of consults. Everyone gets a half-day for didactics, and there's a free lunch for all of the residents from various classes to hang out beforehand, which is nice.

I'm currently doing inpatient psych at Parkland, which is interesting because they don't do substance abuse on this unit (don't worry, there is plenty of opportunity for that elsewhere) So you get to see very sick chronic mental illness in kind of a "pure" form, uncomplicated by crack.

And I believe we have all of the fellowships.

Hope this helps.

I am applying to UTSW, and it is high on my list. I like that they offer tons of electives and have strong faculty. I also like that the residents can receive basic training in family practice without doing a combined elective. I'm considering practicing in an under served area, so it would be good for my patients if I was able to manage basic medical problems. Also, I like the idea of being able to deal with my friends and family's problems.

 

[utkelly13]

I'm a graduate from a Texas program.

San Antonio residents are very happy. What's great about the program is the large size, and the family feel (the program director is the BEST in the nation, I'm sure). Large size is great because call gets divided better. Also, the variability in rotating sites, including many military sites where you can learn a lot about "first break" psychosis and see many recently returned vets from Iraq. Also the VA and the university hospital.

Also, Houston has the infamous menenger clinic, which would be an amazing training opportunity.

 

[cleareyedguy]

The Menninger addition was very helpful to Baylor, if only because their negotiations brought Glen Gabbard to Houston. Gabbard teaches the residents regularly, and he's as good in person as his books are, uhm, as books. Menninger is also building a psych hospital near the Texas Medical Center, which should be a useful addition to the resident experience.

I assume there are several very strong programs, but I really just know about Baylor's.

By the way, one downside to psychiatry in Texas is--from what I hear--poor state funding for the mentally ill poor that leads to a paucity of inpatient beds and abysmal outpatient programs. If anyone can correct me on that, great, but I hear that recurrently from my friends in texas (it doesn't affect outpatient upscale care--Texas has plenty of affluent people--but it really hurts half the population).

 

[Hurricane]

By the way, one downside to psychiatry in Texas is--from what I hear--poor state funding for the mentally ill poor that leads to a paucity of inpatient beds and abysmal outpatient programs. If anyone can correct me on that, great, but I hear that recurrently from my friends in texas (it doesn't affect outpatient upscale care--Texas has plenty of affluent people--but it really hurts half the population).

Yes, this is true. I've heard that we rank 48th or 49th for public mental health funding.

The funding situation is a little different in the Dallas area. Not better, just different. The seven counties around Dallas are part of a mental health managed care experiment, so instead of putting people on regular Medicaid, the money goes into the NorthSTAR program, which then contracts with an HMO to run things, which then subcontracts with various hospitals and clinics to deliver care. The benefit is that more people are able to get services than would have otherwise, but the downside is that the services are suckier. For example, people get free meds, but the approved formulary doesn't have any atypicals on it.

 

[CapitalPsych]

I am a PGY 3 at the Austin Medical Education Programs Dept of Psychiatry. Our program is quickly becoming one of the choice programs in the state for several reasons.

1) We have gone from a state program, mostly full of FMG's, to a private program and will transition, as all the other AMEP programs have, to become UTMB Austin by July 1, 2008.

2) Over the last two years we have had new faculty from Mayo, Brown, USC, UCLA, Iowa, and more on the way. The teaching has gone from mediocre to top notch.

3) Austin, it's the best city in the state of Texas.

4) There are no longer any FMG's in any year, and the current intern class included two AOA members.

5) Night float in the PGY2 year allows ZERO call and ZERO weekends during the 3rd and 4th year. Life is sweet, the attendings are jealous.

6) Entire day with no clinic duties for lecture and Psychotherapy patients.

7) Austin is the place that most UTMB Galveston students want to do their third and 4th years. (Galveston vs. Austin)

8) Since Austin has the AustinStateHospital, Psychiatric Emergency Services, and other private hospitals with psych units, there are multiple moonlighting opportunities. In 4th year you're allowed to have your own private practice. Not all residents moonlight, but the ones who do earn up to six figures above their resident salary.

9) Location, Location, Location. It's based out of ShoalCreekHospital which is in the heart of downtown Austin.

10) The new resident clinic is located in one of the premier medical buildings in Austin.

11) Doctors eat for free at all Seton Hospitals.

I could go on and on, but based on the quality of applicants from last year and this year, the program is becoming a popular choice. I entered last year as a PGY2 from family medicine and have loved it since. Please let me know if you have any questions.

 

[jane70]

any thoughts on UT-Houston?

I interviewed at UT and while the interview day was good, i was curious what other people have to say about the program? i liked it by the way, other than the day seemed disorganized and a bit chaotic.

 

[Ulquiorra]

Is UT Houston still making the interns do a transitional year?

 

[jane70]

Is UT Houston still making the interns do a transitional year?

On the interview they assured us that it is now 6 months psych and 6 months primary care. The website is wrong.

 

[PsychMedStudent]

Is it tough for someone from an out-of-state medical school to get matched into these Texas programs? I've heard that they give preference to students from Texas and this doesn't leave many spots open for out-of-staters.

 

[Hurricane]

I'm of the residents on the admissions committee at UTSW and it does not seem to be a factor. We match people from all over. I went to med school in Ohio.