Having been in the private practice of psychiatry for over 30 years, I am glad to say that I still very much enjoy providing direct care for my patients. With equal conviction, I can safely state that like most of us who work in health care I am not a big fan of all the paperwork that goes along with my practice. This is not to say that medical records don’t have a place in our work. But, the situation has mushroomed to the point that we are incredibly consumed by the avalanche of paperwork that can take up more time than what we provide for our patients. In recent years, the biggest and most increasing offender has been, in my opinion, the prior authorization process. [Read More]

Welcome to the first of many entries to my blog. As some of you might know, the title "Psych It to Me" is a play on words of one of the signature lines from the late-60s television hit Laugh-In. Those of you who remember the show, as I do, recall the various cast members and guest stars who uttered the phrase "Sock it to me" at various points during the show's run. Those four words became a part of the day's culture as did various other expressions from that show. I have learned in my psychiatric practice that words indeed matter whether they are spoken, written, or simply thought. [Read More]