Diligence Addiction Services

Psychiatric Consultation

A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the evaluation and treatment of mental and behavioral pathology. Psychiatry is one of the oldest medical specialties, but is also one of the most exciting frontiers of medicine. Recent advances in the neurosciences have led to new technologies in the diagnosis and treatment of many of these illnesses. For example, the DSM-IV diagnostic manual, brain imaging, and new pharmaceuticals have significantly improved diagnosis and treatment for these illnesses. Direct Care psychiatrists are Board certification through the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. 

Mental healthes, including addictions, are common. Like other medical illnesses, mental health range from severe and life-threatening disorders to relatively mild and self-limiting conditions. Approximately 2.8% of the adult population suffers from severe mental health, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, or from the more common, yet disabling, anxiety and depressive disorders or from alcohol and other substance abuse. We use the biological, psy chological, social and spiritual / cultural model in our assessment and treatment plans, with psychopharmacology (medication), psychotherapy, consultation with other mental health providers, and screening tools.

Psychotherapy is a systematic treatment method in which, during regularly scheduled meetings, the psychiatrist and patient discuss troubling problems and feelings. The physician helps patients understand the basis of these problems and find solutions. Depending on the extent of the problem, treatment may take just a few sessions over one or two weeks, or many sessions over several years.