Medicine-Psychiatry

Considering specializing in medicine or psychiatry? Why not both?

The University of Kentucky internal medicine/psychiatry program is a combined five-year program leading to certification in both specialties. Our residents will spend equal time in internal medicine and psychiatry. MedPsych-trained physicians recognize how each perspective allows them to provide better, comprehensive care to their patients and fill a much needed niche in our health care system.

Why get combined training in medicine and psychiatry?

There is a growing recognition that patients with comorbid medical and mental illness have worse outcomes. We need more providers who can provide the complex care these vulnerable patients need. Health care systems are developing innovative care models and want graduates of combined training programs — whether inpatient hospitals, community mental health centers, or primary care. You can truly treat the whole patient.

Benefits of Combined Training at UK

The University of Kentucky has extensive experience with combined training programs with strong internal medicine/pediatrics and pediatrics/psychiatry/child psychiatry residency programs. We know how to customize the training experience of our combined programs yet also make you feel at home in the larger programs in which you work. Our program features a tremendous diversity of training sites including:

UK Chandler Hospital — our academic tertiary acute care hospital that cares for the sickest patients in the state
UK Good Samaritan Hospital — a community hospital with both inpatient medicine and behavioral health units
VA Hospital and ambulatory clinics — innovative care for our nation’s veterans
Eastern State Psychiatric Hospital — our state psychiatric facility on a beautiful modern campus
University of Kentucky Student Health Clinic — opportunities to care for young adults
New Vistas Community Mental Health Center — Central Kentucky’s nonprofit multiservice mental health care network
Telemedicine — learn how to practice effective telehealth with state-of-the-art equipment

Within those various rotation sites, our program has several integrative experiences to see firsthand how these two fields come together for more holistic patient care.

Addiction medicine
HIV psychiatry
Transplant psychiatry
Beyond Birth Clinic – addiction treatment for postpartum women

Our Curriculum

Here is a sample schedule for a combined internal medicine/psychiatry resident. Our unique curriculum includes an ambulatory block every third month. The first 30 months are a seamless mix of medicine and psychiatry, which will allow you to integrate rather than compartmentalize what you are learning. You then have 30 months of consolidation rotations to really focus and hone your skills in both field, including 12 continuous months of outpatient psychiatry which gives you ample opportunity to have long-term psychotherapy patients using a variety of psychotherapeutic modalities.

Internal Medicine - Psychiatry Schedule; Psychiatry marked with *
Month	PGY1	PGY2	PGY3	PGY4	PGY5
July	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	Specialty Consults	*12 months outpatient psychiatry, outpatient child, and addiction psychiatry
August	Cardiology Wards	Medicine Wards	*Emergency Psychiatry	Medicine Wards
September	Medicine Wards	Emergency Medicine	*Inpatient Psychiatry Supervisor	Peri-Op Wards
October	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	Specialty Consults
November	*Inpatient Psychiatry	*Inpatient Psychiatry	Medicine Wards	Medicine Elective
December	*Community Inpatient Psychiatry	*Emergency Psychiatry	MICU	CCU
January	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	*Child Psychiatry - Inpatient and	*12 months outpatient psychiatry including outpatient Child and Addiction Psychiatry	MICU or CCU
February	*Inpatient Neurology	MICU	*Psychiatry Elective/Forensic		Geriatric Medicine
March	*Inpatient Psychiatry	Wards – GS	*Inpatient Geriatric Psychiatry		Wards -- DC
April	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	Ambulatory Medicine and Continuity Clinic	*Consult/Liaison Psychiatry		Specialty Consults
May	*Consult/Liaison Psychiatry	*Neurology Consults	*Inpatient VA Psychiatry		Medicine Elective
June	*Inpatient Psychiatry	*Consult/Liaison Psychiatry	*Consult/Liaison Psychiatry		Specialty Consults

Psychiatry marked with *

Didactic Curriculum

Our didactic curriculum builds on the strong foundation of both our internal medicine and psychiatry programs.

Internal medicine morning report and noon conferences: Our twice-daily IM conference series includes an interactive morning case conference then a high-yield didactic lecture at lunch.
Psychiatry didactic half-day: This in-depth academic half-day allows our combined trainees to learn alongside categorical psychiatry residents.
Monthly Med/Psych journal club or case conference: Our combined conference series is a monthly offering specifically designed for our Med-Psych residents and program faculty.