The objectives of this clerkship are to introduce medical students to clinical psychiatry and enable them to acquire knowledge and skills through clinical experiences under faculty guidance. 

Students will be assigned to Psychiatric Units at one of the area hospitals. They will be given responsibility for direct patient care under the supervision of attending psychiatrists and staff. In addition, they will gain experience in emergency psychiatry through evening and weekend rotations at the CPEP at Erie County Medical Center. This six-week program includes lectures, seminars, and conferences on a variety of psychiatric subjects.

On the first day of each rotation students will receive an orientation to psychiatry and written material pertinent to the course, including lists of objectives and a bibliography of required and suggested readings. At the end of the course, a multiple-choice written examination will be given. 

Upon completion of the clerkship, the students should be competent to evaluate and manage patients with major mental illness, should be able to interview patients skillfully, possess basic knowledge of psychopharmacology, be familiar with common problems at the psychiatric-medical interface, and be able to assess psychiatric emergencies. At orientation on the first day of the clerkship, each student will receive detailed online course materials describing clerkship objectives, responsibilities, course curriculum, clinical placements, and student evaluation and grading.

Prerequisite: MS3 (this is a required third year clerkship)

Blocks: 1-4

Clerkship Director: Charles Camp, MD

Clerkship Coordinator: Leanne Hatswell