Medical Doctor

I am a provider at our Fox Chapel clinic who offers psychiatry services!

My ideal client is someone who is highly motivated for treatment, willing to learn about their condition and how to manage it. They are suffering from a diagnosable mental health condition which is interfering their academic, occupational, or social functioning, and causing disturbing symptoms. They want to feel better, and understand why they are experiencing this. They need a clinician who will listen, carefully identify their condition and provide acceptable treatment. They want to return to a normal level of functioning and quality of life.

In psychiatry it is important to remember that you are treating the individual, not the disease. Your client is not just bringing to the table a collection of symptoms, but rather their entire life experience. While it is important to correctly diagnose a psychiatric condition and provide appropriate medication and therapy, it is equally important to understand who this person is. I try to understand not only what the client is experiencing, but what their attitudes are about treatment. It is only in this way that treatment can be individualized and successful.

I have practiced psychiatry for 30 years, and in that time my clients have always told me that I am a good listener. As much as possible I have always taken seriously what they are telling me rather than try to prejudge what I think is going on. A therapeutic relationship works best when it is treated like a partnership, and that is the way I view my clients, as partners. As a clinician, you are only as good as the information you obtain from your client, so it is vital to listen.