The Perspectives approach to psychiatry focuses on four aspects of psychiatric practice and research: disease, dimensional, behavior, and lifestory. In Systematic Psychiatric Evaluation, Drs. Margaret S. Chisolm and Constantine G. Lyketsos underscore the benefits of this approach, showing how it improves clinicians' abilities to evaluate, diagnose, and treat patients. Drs. Chisolm and Lyketsos use increasingly complex case histories to help the mental health provider evaluate patients demonstrating symptoms of bipolar disorder, psychosis, suicidal ideation, depression, eating disorders, and cutting, among other conditions. The book also includes an exercise that simulates the Perspectives approach side by side with traditional methods, revealing the advantages of a method that engages not one but four points of view. Featuring a foreword by Drs. Paul R. McHugh and Phillip R. Slavney, the originators of the Perspectives approach, this innovative book will be used in psychiatric training programs as well as by practicing mental health clinicians. -- Arnold E. Andersen, M.D., The University of Iowa College of Medicine

A psychiatric assessment is a structured clinical conversation, complemented by observation and mental state examination, and supplemented by a physical examination and the interview of family members when appropriate. After the initial interview, the clinician should be able to establish whether the individual has a mental health problem or not, the nature of the problem, and a plan for the most suitable treatment. Essentials of Psychiatric Assessment provides the resident or beginning psychiatrist with a complete road map to a thorough clinical evaluation.

A fascinating text that addresses the clinical and educational challenges of treating psychiatric patients from a truly multidisciplinary perspective using a case-based format, Approach to the Psychiatric Patient: Case-Based Essays is the only book of its kind and an indispensable addition to the mental health practitioner's library. The new edition builds upon the strengths that distinguished the first, with composite cases that are carefully constructed to capture real-world problems, followed by essays that provide clear and cogent perspectives on the case. These essays cover a wide range, from the more conventional (such as differential diagnosis of anxiety or the clinical characteristics of delirium) to the unusual and intriguing (such as creativity and mental illness or an analysis of the case in relation to the classic, Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde). Every chapter has been revised, and the book boasts many new co-contributors, as well as the addition of completely new essays. For example, in the chapter on geriatric depression, several new essays have been added on the topics of collaborative care and the embedded psychiatrist, depression and medical illness, and biomarkers to identify depression subtypes, while the chapter on terminal illness features new essays on spirituality and meaning-centered therapy. In addition, there are new essays on co-occurring anxiety and alcohol use disorders, medication assisted treatment for stimulant use, treatment of body dysmorphic disorder, and more.The text possesses many useful attributes for the reader: The more than 100 essays were written by a broad range of specialists, each with particular expertise in their aspect of the case, and the resulting commentary is focused and concise. In addition to the case and discussions, each chapter offers an overview and summary points designed to facilitate further consideration of the patient and clinical situation and to focus on the key points. The book's unique structure enhances its flexibility, allowing the reader to read a case and accompanying essays straight through, or to pick and choose as the need or whim arises. The cases' clinical settings are diverse, ranging from inpatient hospitalizations and emergency room evaluations to outpatient assessments and long-term psychotherapies, maximizing relevance and resonance. Each essay has its own bibliography, which provides both rigorous documentation and additional sources for more exploration of the topic. Approach to the Psychiatric Patient: Case-Based Essays distinguishes itself from prior texts in both the richness of its cases and the ingenuity of its format, and its multidisciplinary wisdom and insight will be appreciated by a wide range of readers.

Substantially revised to include a wealth of new material, the second edition of this highly acclaimed work provides a concise, coherent introduction that brings structure to an increasingly fragmented and amorphous discipline. Paul R. McHugh and Phillip R. Slavney offer an approach that emphasizes psychiatry's unifying concepts while accommodating its diversity. Recognizing that there may never be a single, all-encompassing theory, the book distills psychiatric practice into four explanatory methods: diseases, dimensions of personality, goal-directed behaviors, and life stories. These perspectives, argue the authors, underlie the principles and practice of all psychiatry. With an understanding of these fundamental methods, readers will be equipped to organize and evaluate psychiatric information and to develop a confident approach to practice and research.

While the ABPN has now supplied such standards for psychiatry, psychiatric interviewing instruction has not been standardized in the US or in other countries. Similarly, the few psychiatric interviewing books available are written in textbook form, often long and often from the subpecialty perspective (e.g. psychodynamic interviewing). Critically, no interviewing guides to date take a true biopsychosocial perspective. That is, they limit themselves to “interviewing” as an isolated technique divorced from full patient assessment, which for quality patient care must include the interface of psychological and social components with biological components. Similarly, few interviewing texts are fully integrated with DSM/ICD categorical diagnostic schemata, even though these descriptive diagnostic systems represent the very core of our clinical language—the lingua franca of the mental health professions. Without good descriptive diagnoses there cannot be adequate communication of clinical data among providers. The proposed book will meet this need for training in biopsychosocial assessment and diagnosis. The patient interview is at the heart of psychiatric practice. Listening and interviewing skills are the primary tools the psychiatrist uses to obtain the information needed to make an accurate diagnosis and then to plan appropriate treatment. The American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and the Accrediting Council on Graduate Medical Education identify interviewing skills as a core competency for psychiatric residents. The Psychiatric Interview: evaluation and diagnosis is a new and modern approach to this topic that fulfills the need for training in biopsychosocial assessment and diagnosis. It makes use of both classical and new knowledge of psychiatric diagnosis, assessment, treatment planning and doctor-patient collaboration. Written by world leaders in education, the book is based on the acclaimed Psychiatry Third Edition by Tasman, Kay et al, with new chapters to address assessment in special populations and formulation. The psychiatric interview is conceptualized as integrating the patient's experience with psychological, biological, and environmental components of the illness. This is an excellent new text for psychiatry residents at all stages of their training. It is also useful for medical students interested in psychiatry and for practicing psychiatrists who may wish to refresh their interviewing skills.

"The Psychiatric Evaluation and Treatment of Refugees is a cutting-edge volume of contributions that help mental health professionals better understand the outcomes and solutions for the complicated mix of trauma and immigration with culture and worldview found in the treatment of refugee patients. Written by experts in cross-cultural psychiatry, the book holds a balance between up-to-date science and the collective experiential wisdom of the Intercultural Psychiatric Program at the Oregon Health & Science University, providing a key reference for psychiatrists and other mental health professionals working in cross-cultural trauma. The editors and authors of this volume have contributed to an understanding of the blend of necessary science/evidence and compassion that gives mental health providers insight as to how to understand and treat these often traumatized patients"--