Didactic Seminars and Conferences

The didactic program takes place on Tuesday mornings from 8:30-11:45a.m. The weekly "T-group" at 1:00 p.m. is followed by a Clinical Interaction or Empathic Interviewing Seminar at 2p.m. The Therapeutic Interaction Seminar is a forum for the discussion of psychotherapeutic and transference issues in one's psychiatric work as a resident. For the Empathic Interviewing Seminar, the Associate Training Director interviews a patient, followed by a review of the process of establishing rapport and its relevance for diagnosis and further treatment. The Resident Group business meeting with the Program Director is held the first Tuesday of each month at noon, which provides an opportunity to address practical issues concerning clinical rotations, didactics or supervision.

The formal didactic curriculum is organized as a cycle of lectures and seminars. The core curriculum repeats every two years, and is interspersed with special invited lectures, usually resident-focused presentations by the Grand Rounds speakers. The topics of the core curriculum are chosen to complement the R-1 and R-2 didactics the residents have received in Seattle prior to coming to Spokane. Each academic year includes a didactic lecture series on Psychopharmacology. In addition, the program features major modules of Psychotherapy in General Psychiatry, Human Development over the life-span, including Child, Adolescent, Adult and Late-life developmental principles applicable to Psychiatry, and minor modules of Suicide and Violence Risk Assessment, Social Skills and Territoriality training, Addictions and Co-Occurring Disorders, and Evidence-Based Psychiatry. Special Topics include Administrative and Organizational Psychiatry, Cross-Cultural Psychiatry, Diagnostic evaluation (psychiatric examination, neuroimaging, laboratory testing, psychological testing), Dialectic Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Ethics, Forensic/Legal Issues in Psychiatry, History of Psychiatry, Psychiatric Practice, Sexuality including sexual orientation, gender identity and sexual dysfunction, Sleep, Spirituality, and more.

Grand Rounds

Psychiatry Grand Rounds are held the second Tuesday of each month at Sacred Heart Medical Center and the third Tuesday of each month at Spokane Mental Health. Grand Rounds presentations at Sacred Heart are accredited by the Providence Health & Services Continuing Medical Education Committee for 1.0 hour of CME credit each month. Spokane Mental Health Grand Rounds are incorporated into the training calendar for multidisciplinary clinical staff, including doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners, therapists, case managers, and others.

Journal Club

Journal Club is held monthly with residents and faculty members attending. Articles relevant to a particular topic are presented and discussed.