Lippincott's Primary Care Psychiatry
Doody's Book Review Service, 14-DEC-09, Heather Huang, MD, Rush University Medical Center -- "This book reviews the basics of psychiatric disorders for practicing primary care physicians, covering the highlights of epidemiology, clinical presentation, differential diagnosis, relevant laboratory data, treatment, and when to refer to a psychiatrist. The purpose is to provide a 'practical, easy-to-use educational tool that will help primary care and mental health trainees and providers feel more comfortable and confident when assessing and treating the most commonly encountered conditions in primary care psychiatry.' It is intended for primary care providers, medical subspecialists, and anyone who may encounter patients with mental health issues. The authors are exceptionally qualified as they are all dually board certified in medicine and psychiatry, grappling with issues at this interface on a daily basis.  "The book is organized conceptually into chapters on the various adult psychiatric disorders. Two additional chapters review suicide and violence assessment as well as the psychiatric interview, with suggestions on how best to conduct one in the setting of a medical interview. Excellent graphs and tables concisely highlight key points of each section and the book includes a patient education poster of depression that can be hung in the office. The book also comes with free access to the contents online.  "This is a wonderfully organized book that distills an incredible amount of information into easily digestible points. Case vignettes keep the material engaging. Because of their dual training, the authors have unique insight into the needs of medical practitioners. At a time when so many patients present with mental health concerns, this is a must-have for the shelf of every primary care provider."-Doody's Book Review Service (Weighted Numerical Score: 98, 5 Stars)