Quality Improvement Framework to Examine Health Care Disparities in Behavioral Emergency Management in the Inpatient Medical Setting: A Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry Health Equity Project.

Background: De-escalation of behavioral emergencies in the inpatient medical setting may involve restrictive clinical interventions that directly challenge patient autonomy.

Objective: We describe a quality improvement framework used to examine associations between patient characteristics and behavioral emergency de-escalation strategies. This project may inform other Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry teams seeking to promote equity in care.

Psychopharmacology Prescribing Workshops: A Novel Method for Teaching Psychiatry Residents How to Talk to Patients About Medications.

Objective: Traditional, lecture-based methods of teaching pharmacology may not translate into the skills needed to communicate effectively with patients about medications. In response, the authors developed an interactive course for third-year psychiatry residents to reinforce prescribing skills.

Methods: Residents participate in a facilitated group discussion combined with a role-play exercise where they mock-prescribe medication to their peers.

A Qualitative Study of Factors Affecting Morale in Psychiatry Residency Training.

Objective: Resident morale is an important yet poorly understood aspect of the residency training experience. Despite implications for program quality, resident satisfaction, patient care, and recruitment, little is known about the variables influencing this complex phenomenon. This study sought to identify important factors affecting morale in psychiatry residency training.

Impaired visual scanning and memory for faces in high-functioning autism spectrum disorders: it's not just the eyes.

Prior studies suggest that autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are associated with a domain-specific memory impairment for faces. The underlying cause of this problem and its relation to impaired visual scanning of faces--particularly of the eyes--remains to be determined. We recorded eye movements while 22 high-functioning ASD and 21 typically developing (TD) adolescents encoded and later recognized faces and objects from a single, nonsocial object category (electric fans).