Program Director, Dr. Farber, presenting to residents

While seeing patients and practicing medicine is a critical part of residency training, organized didactics and seminars are also critical for the development of the young psychiatrist. These formats allow residents to gain a deeper understanding of the scientific foundation of our field, current developments, and the likely path that we will be walking in the future.

Conferences and seminars

Our program’s didactic training can be divided into four main groups.  The first group includes the routine Grand Rounds, general resident lecture series, and M&M Conferences that most programs provide their residents. The second group is comprised of specific summer series that prepare a specific resident cohort for the upcoming year. The third group–advanced resident lectures and Research Conference–is designed for PGY3s and 4s and allows them to delve into subjects in much more detail. Finally, the fourth group involves rotation-specific lectures and conferences.

Grand Rounds

Grand Rounds takes place weekly from mid-September to mid-May. Topics run the gamut from basic neuroscience to clinical topics.

General resident seminars

The Tuesday Resident Seminar series is designed to give residents the basic fund of knowledge needed for a psychiatrist practicing in today’s modern times. The seminars include a variety of modules, ranging from topics in leadership, clinical education, as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Residents involved in our research program, PRREP, also have the opportunity to present their projects and continue to build on research and clinical skills. This is also the scheduled time for residents of all years to come together regularly for monthly program updates and check-in. Clinical topics throughout this series are planned to repeat on a three-year cycle.  

Research conference & advanced resident seminars

On Wednesday mornings, the department sponsors Research Conference where university and national researchers present and discuss their on-going efforts at advancing our field. Advanced resident seminars for PGY3 and 4 residents are held on Thursday mornings and are organized into advanced topic “courses” that alternate every other year.

M&M Conference

M&M Conference is one of the residents’ most popular seminars. Each PGY4 resident and child fellow prepares a clinical case of interest to that trainee. After presenting the case, the trainee reviews pertinent data from the literature and leads a discussion about the decisions that were made in the case. Below is a listing of the cases that were discussed in the previous year.

ResidentDateTitle
Madeline Nykamp, MD7/27/2022Invega-Related Hyperprolactinemia
Nitya Sreevalsan, MD8/10/2022Suicidality in Pediatric OCD
Austen Smith, MD8/24/2022A Capacity Question to Withdraw Care
Shannon McGuire, MD9/14/2022Paying Attention to the Treatment of ADHD in Patients with Stimulant Use Disorder
Timothy Kundaje, MD9/28/2022Treatment of OCD
Malia Addison, MD10/26/2022Firearms and Mental Health
Elie Abdelnour, MD11/16/2022“She hit one nurse and tried to bite me. Can you help?”
Fayola Fears, MD12/14/2022A Case of New Onset Psychosis
Christine Horan, MD1/18/2023Sexual Dysfunction and Antidepressants
Kevin McDonald, MD2/1/2023Polypharmacy in a Preschool Aged Child
Simone Bernstein, MD2/15/2023The Economic Burden of Schizophrenia and Medication Adherence
Kanika Ramchandani, MD3/8/2023Trauma and Stress Related Disorder: Diagnostic Clarification
Ami Chiu, MD, MPH3/22/2023Enter Sandman – Treatment of Disturbed Sleep in PTSD
Lauren Marks, MD
PGY2 Residents
4/26/2023Quality Improvement Cases

Summer series

During the summer months, residents attend summer seminars that are designed to prepare them for their upcoming year.