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The Carlat Psychiatry Report

Keeping up in Psychiatry (September) | 2014

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Learning Objectives, Keeping up in Psychiatry, TCPR, September 2014

September 1, 2014

After reading these articles, you should be able to… Read More

Step Right Up—Meaningful Use Incentives are Adding Up

September 1, 2014

In 2011, the federal government began offering financial rewards for providers to implement electronic health records (EHRs) in caring for their Medicare and Medicaid patients. For eligible doctors, these “meaningful use” incentives could provide you with extra income of up to $44,000 over five years in Medicare incentives and $63,750 in Medicaid incentives over six years. Read More

Op-Ed: Maintenance of Certification—Is it safe to opt out?

September 1, 2014

Janis Bacon Petzel, MD, DFAPA

The American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology’s (ABPN) new Maintenance of Certification (MOC) process has created an uproar in many physician circles. It’s not the idea of proving competence that inflames strong emotions among physicians, it’s the manner in which MOC is being implemented. Read More

Maintenance of Certification: What You Need to Know

September 1, 2014

Daniel Carlat, MD

Since I last wrote about MOC in 2010, the most relevant news has not been within the program itself, but in the increasingly rancorous reaction against its requirements from physicians of all specialties. Regardless, it doesn’t look like ABPN is going to be ditching MOC any time soon, so this article pretty much lays out what you have to do, without (much) editorializing. Read More

Using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) in Your Practice

September 1, 2014

Karl Lanocha, MD

Get insight into how you can use transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to help patients with depression who have failed to respond to therapy and antidepressants, in an interview with neuropsychiatrist Karl Lanocha, MD. Read More

Mood Stabilizer Plus Antidepressant May Protect Against Mania

September 1, 2014

Glen Spielmans, PhD

Most of you would hesitate to put a patient with bipolar I on antidepressants without adding a mood stabilizer, in order to prevent a switch to mania. If this is your clinical practice, you are following the recommendations of the APA consensus guidelines for the treatment of bipolar depression. But the hard data to support the danger of switching is surprisingly weak. Read More

CBT Moderately Effective in Improving Quality of Life for Anxiety Disorders

September 1, 2014

Glen Spielmans, PhD

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been shown to be effective in reducing the symptoms of anxiety disorders. But there’s not a lot of information about whether it improves patients’ quality of life (QoL), even though one would think improvement in QoL is inherent when anxiety is reduced. Read More

Another Sleeping Pill on the Market: Merck’s Belsomra

September 1, 2014

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last month approved Merck’s new insomnia drug, Belsomra, the first in a new class of hypnotics termed “orexin antagonists.” If you’ve never heard of orexin, put on your seat belts, because you’ll be getting a crash course from your local drug reps. Read More

Should We Share Therapy Notes with Our Patients?

September 1, 2014

Like most psychiatrists, you are likely a bit wary of sharing your therapy notes with your patients. Will they be offended by reading painfully honest descriptions of their issues? Will they be confused by your use of psychiatric terminology? Read More