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PsychSIGN

The Psychiatry Student Interest Group Network (PsychSIGN) is sponsored by the American Psychiatric Association. The University of Tennessee Health Science Center's PsychSIGN Chapter is dedicated to connecting students with information about the specialty of psychiatry and to serving the UTHSC medical student community.

 

Think you might be interested in psychiatry?

Join our Email List!

Join by emailing psychsign@uthsc.edu, and/or you can reach out to Jakub Denkiewicz, UTHSC PsychSIGN President, at jdenkiew@uthsc.edu.

 

The SAM Podcast has arrived!

The Student Academic Mentoring (SAM) podcast is a project hosted by UTHSC’s chapter of the Psychiatry Student Interest Group (PsychSIGN). We are conducting interviews with upper-level medical students with the aim of providing unfiltered advice to incoming medical students about the lessons we have learned along the way. A main theme of the podcast will be to touch on medical student recommendations to incoming students, in light of the remote learning environment they will be experiencing.

Medical school is a difficult, and oftentimes lonely, experience. By listening to our peers share the difficulties and triumphs they've faced, incoming medical students might gain reassurance and insight into the unfamiliar territory of medical school. We hope that these podcasts also help strengthen medical students' resilience, especially in the uncomfortable environment of remote learning and social limitations.

Please contact us if you would like to contribute to this project: James Scott Wing, M4 at jswing@uthsc.edu.

  • Episode 1 - Introducing the SAM Podcast!
  • Episode 2 - Getting the Most out of Study Resources
  • Episode 3 - Dr. Renate Rosenthal on Mindfulness and Meditation: Guest Speaker Dr. Rosenthal provides information on mindfulness and guides listeners through a meditation exercise. (October 2020)
  • Episode 4 - Imposter Syndrome:  Med students James, Dora, and Yucera Salman discuss their past experiences in the pre-clinical years and beyond, including bad exam scores and feeling like imposters in medical school. (November 2020)
  • Episode 5 - Leadership in Medical School: UTHSC COM Class of 2022 class president, Jacob Woodroof, joins us to talk about the development of leadership skills during medical school. (January 2020)
  • Episode 6 - Solidarity Week: Kevin Sellers, current M4 and a co-liaison of the Gold Humanism Honors Society (GHHS), shares the purpose behind Solidarity Week, which takes place February 15th through 19th. He also introduces the upcoming Resident Appreciation Day- planned for February 26. (February 2021)
  • Episode 7 - Resident Appreciation Day: Current medical students provide "shout-outs" to residents across different specialties within UTHSC. Music created by Dr. Marthinus Zeeman. (February 26, 2021)
  • Episode 8 - Interview with Dr. Sara McHenry, PGY2 UTHSC Psychiatry: Dr. McHenry shares her pre-med experience as a psychiatry technician and describes her path to the UTHSC Psychiatry residency program. (December 2020)
  • Episode 9Interview with Dr. Sarah Bell, PGY4 UTHSC Psychiatry: Dr. Bell shares what her past 4 years have been like as a resident at UTHSC; including specific things she has appreciated about UTHSC. She also discusses her plans to pursue an Addiction Medicine fellowship. (February 2021)
  • Episode 10 - Career Spotlight: Addiction Medicine: Guest Speaker Dr. Marthinus Zeeman plays us into the episode with a guitar solo; then he describes his role as an attending physician for the UTHSC Addiction Medicine clinic. Includes an overview of substance use disorder treatment. (February 2021)
  • Episode 11 - Interview with Dr. Ferrell Varner, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at UTHSC:Dr. Varner describes his career in outpatient psychiatry within an academic setting. He speaks to his reasons for pursuing psychiatry, and we discuss personal statements for psychiatry residency. Music by Dr. Marthinus Zeeman. (March 2021)
  • Episode 12 - Interview with Dr. Christie Brooks, staff psychiatrist at Memphis VA Hospital: Dr. Brooks describes her experiences with inpatient psychiatry in addition to her role at Youth Villages, where she provides child/adolescent psychiatric care in a residential setting. We also discuss personal characteristics that are beneficial in future psychiatrists. Music by Dr. Marthinus Zeeman. (March 2021)

Officers


Jakub Denkiewicz, M4
President

Jessica Kariuki, M4
Vice President of Clinical Outreach and Advocacy

Ashton Hunter, M4
Vice-President of Education and Research

Justin Adam, M4
Treasurer

Archie Troxel, M3
Secretary

Alexis (Lexie) Wanat
M2 Class Representative

Nicholas Dikhtyar
M1 Class Representative

Kelsey Bastian, MD
Faculty Advisor, Assistant Professor
Faculty Profile

 

Resources

Research at UT Health Science Center

Please visit PsychSIGN's curated listing of psychiatry and brain-related research here. Please check back often for new opportunities!

Scholarships and Fellowships

PsychSIGN has put together a list of fantastic scholarship and fellowship opportunities to enhance your CV or to broaden your exposure to a particular area of psychiatry. Please check back often as we will actively update this page with new opportunities! 

Shadowing

What does a day in the life of a psychiatrist look like? Email our faculty advisor Dr. Bastian at kbastian@uthsc.edu for an outpatient psychiatry opportunity. If you are an M1 or M2, you can sign up to shadow Dr. Cowan at the Wellness and Stress Clinic in the Service section below.

Service

  • Volunteering at the Memphis Crisis Center. Part of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, Medical Students answer phone calls from persons in distress. This is great way to learn how to have out-of-the-ordinary conversations.
  • Volunteering at the 'PsychSIGN Wellness and Stress Clinic.' UT Health Science Center PsychSIGN has partnered with the Wellness and Stress Clinic to see psychiatric patients for free in our own separate space. The preceptor for the clinic is the department's chair, Dr. Cowan.

Clinical Tools

Benzodiazepine Conversion Calculator

Young Mania Rating Scale

Perspectives Article: Dr. Hill's Approach 

McLean Screening Instrument

Bush Francis Rating Scale

 

Did you know that medical students can join the American Psychiatric Association for free

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Jan 30, 2024