What Is a Psychiatrist?
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mental illnesses and emotional problems. Because of extensive medical training, the psychiatrist understands the body's functions and the complex relationship between emotional illness and other medical illnesses. The psychiatrist is thus the mental health professional and physician best qualified to distinguish between physical and psychological causes of both mental and physical distress.

Why Choose a Psychiatrist?
Of all the mental health providers in the United States, only psychiatrists are fully licensed medical doctors. Because they are physicians, psychiatrists can order or perform a full range of medical laboratory and psychological tests that provide a complete picture of a patient's physical and mental state. Their education and years of clinical experience equip them to understand the complex relationship between emotional and other medical illness, evaluate all the medical and psychological data, make a diagnosis, develop a treatment plan and provide comprehensive treatment including individual, group, family and marital psychotherapy. Also, as physicians, they are the only mental health providers who can prescribe medication and order medical tests.