2021 CMDA Virtual National Convention | Psychiatry Track

The abstracts for each presentation are listed below to provide an overview of the modules available for purchase in this course. You may click on each title listed in the modules below for more information about that individual workshop or to purchase and view that workshop.

This presentation is a depression introduction and will integrate faith-based and psychiatric science to embrace and understand Behavioral Health issues using a Spirit-Mind-Body perspective and uses this paradigm to understand the role of neuroplasticity and Neuro-Theology in the etiology and treatment of depression as well as a brief overview of present biological therapeutics.

In the general population and in the Christian community, there is often a misunderstanding about mental illness. In this context, Dr. Suzuki will discuss Major Depression as a medical illness requiring proper diagnosis, education of patients and optimal treatment based on symptoms. Practical clinical issues related to selection of antidepressants and augmentations strategies will be examined. Options of treatment for resistant depression including ECT, rTMS, and Esketamine will be reviewed.

Treating difficult depressions can be stressful when presentation and symptoms are “atypical” and not the classic depression. Various common types of atypical depressions will be discussed as specific syndromes that require further either psychiatric referral or different treatment algorithms. These advanced depression subtypes will be described as typical patterns. The purpose of this session is to reduce the uncertainty and stress in caring for patients with atypical depression forms.

Primary Care Physicians are often the first and may be the only medical professionals to evaluate a patient who is suicidal. Proper identification of those patients at risk, assessment, and treatment may decrease suicides. It is anticipated that the rate of suicides will increase due to the COVID pandemic. The objective of the presentation will be to provide practice skills to mitigate suicide risk.

In medical training, most of us have been taught to consider diagnoses based on the principles of cartesian dualism, a separation of physical problems and mental problems. There is also an implicit encouragement to ignore spiritual problems, relegating them to the purview of hospital chaplains or patients' church pastors. This mindset does us a disservice, as so often there is an interplay of one's physical, mental, and spiritual conditions. This presentation will use some case examples to highlight some common clinical issues that arise at the convergence of body, mind, and spirit.

Depression is a disease of the mind, body and spirit and thus necessitates a holistic approach for best outcomes. Psychiatric medication and psychotherapy play an important role in treatment of mental illness, but did you know there are evidence-based ways to treat depression that do not rely on medication? By using non-pharmaceutical interventions, we can augment our current treatment, reduce side effect, increase our health and energy, and empower our patients.