Psychiatry Residency Curriculum

Summer Orientation

A one-month long intensive orientation seminar designed to provide new residents with an introduction to psychopharmacology; patient evaluation; emergency room evaluation; management of agitation; Massachusetts commitment laws; interviewing skills; risk management; mental and cognitive status evaluation techniques; neurological examination; non-violent self-defense techniques; tours of community referral sites; professionalism; basic psychiatric ethics and night call issues.

Longitudinal Curriculum Tracks

Three to four-year didactic curricula allowing increased depth as training progresses exist in the following areas. Other areas are covered during individual years of the training program.

ADDICTION PSYCHIATRY

• Inpatient addiction psychiatry consult team rotation (PGY-I)
• Inpatient/outpatient addiction psychiatry rotation (PGY-II)
• Weekly case conference includes addiction cases (all 4 years)
• Biological Psychiatry Seminar includes addiction psychiatry month (all 4 years)
• Chief Residency available (PGY-IV)

PSYCHIATRIC EDUCATOR

• Educational mentorship (all 4 years)
• Select seminar to help create curriculum/co-coordinate (PGY-II to PGY-IV)
• Attend academic psychiatry meeting (AAP, AADPRT, or ADMSEP)
• Opportunities to teach in student clerkship, community, other seminars
• Conduct educational outcome project with goal of national presentation and publication
• Chief residency in psychiatric education (PGY-IV)
• Help plan annual teaching retreat

CREATE YOUR OWN!

Do you have a passion for a particular subspecialty or area of endeavor?  We invite you to work with our program directors to develop your own track.  Here are the building blocks:

• PGY-1: Select your mentor and area
• PGY-2: Plan your selective block to gain experience in an area related to your interest
• PGY-3: Consider soliciting outpatients for group or individual treatment related to your interest. Work with the program directors to plan seminar or didactic curricula related to your area of interest. Consider publishing your work with plan for submission by early PGY-4 year.
• PGY-4: Create a longitudinal elective or chief rotation to develop administrative, clinical and educational experience related to your interest

PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY

• Weekly PGY-I and PGY-II years Psychopharmacology Seminar
• Biological psychiatry seminar all four years; Case conferences alternating with journal clubs and invited speakers in neuropsychiatry, neuroscience and psychopharmacology
• Psychopharmacology clinic PGY-III and PGY-IV years (firms of attending and three residents work together)
• Research opportunities (all 4 years)
• PGY-IV electives available (psychopharmacology research, interventional psychiatry, neuropsychiatry, treatment resistant depression, women’s mental health, intellectual disability)

PSYCHODYNAMIC PSYCHOTHERAPY

• Weekly case conference series includes psychodynamic cases (all 4 years)
• Weekly psychotherapy seminar (PGY-II through PGY-IV)
• Pick up 2 long-term psychodynamic psychotherapy outpatients (PGY-II)
• 3 long-term psychodynamic psychotherapy outpatient hours/week (PGY-III and PGY-IV)
• Weekly psychodynamic psychotherapy supervision (PGY-II through PGY-IV)
• Psychodynamic psychotherapy/Psychotherapy education PGY-IV elective available

COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL PSYCHOTHERAPY

• Weekly case conference series includes cognitive-behavioral cases (all 4 years)
• Weekly psychotherapy seminar PGY-II through PGY-IV years
• Weekly cognitive-behavioral supervision PGY-III and PGY-IV years
• 3 cognitive-behavioral therapy outpatient hours/week in PGY-III and IV years
• Electives available in cognitive therapy adapted to particular syndromes

GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY

• Process group/Leadership training (PGY-II)
• Co-lead at least one group therapy with faculty (PGY-III; option to continue in PGY-IV)
• Group therapy seminar (in weekly psychotherapy seminar)

FORENSIC PSYCHIATRY

• Didactics in all 4 years
• PGY-II forensic psychiatry rotation
• PGY-IV electives available
• Fellowship available

NEUROPSYCHIATRY

• One-month neuropsychiatry rotation (PGY-I)
• Weekly Clinical Neuroscience Seminar (PGY-I and II)
• Neuromodulation block (ECT, TMS, treatment resistant depression evaluation) (PGY-II)
• Weekly Neuropsychiatry Elective Seminar (all years)
• Clinical neuroscience/neuropsychiatry/neuromodulation integrated into Biological Psychiatry Seminar all 4 years
• Neuropsychiatry cases in weekly case conference (all years)
• PGY-IV longitudinal electives available in neuromodulation or neuropsychiatry
• PGY-IV Chief Residency available in neuromodulation or neuropsychiatry
• PGY-V Fellowship available (option to specialize in adult developmental disability)

PUBLIC SECTOR PSYCHIATRY

• Visits to public sector treatment sites in the area (PGY-I)
• Neuropsychiatry consultations in state hospital (PGY-I)
• Public sector continuing care unit rotation (PGY-II)
• Forensic psychiatry rotation (PGY-II)
• Community mental health center clinic one day per week (select urban, rural or VA setting) (PGY-III)
• Weekly community psychiatry supervision (PGY-III)
• Community mental health center clinic one-half to one day per week (optional)
• Weekly community psychiatry supervision continued if clinic continued
• Chief residencies and electives available (including deaf unit, adolescent unit, forensic psychiatry, mental health administration, admissions unit, substance abuse, day treatment)