Outpatient Psychiatric Services
Iron City Psychiatry | Birmingham, AL
At Iron City Psychiatry, we provide outpatient medication management services for patients experiencing a variety of psychiatric conditions. We work closely with every patient to understand the roots of their conditions and to ensure that we create an effective treatment plan that enables our patients to manage their symptoms and live their best lives.
Outpatient Psychiatric Services and Medication Management
Our psychiatric services include medication management, which involves using medication to treat the conditions that our patients are experiencing. Some patients receive treatment with medication alone, while others may receive medication management at our practice in conjunction with psychotherapy from another provider.
Our appointment times are longer than the industry standard, which allows us to establish greater rapport in the physician-patient relationship, provide a more accurate diagnosis, and develop more effective and personalized treatment plans. We work closely with each patient to monitor the progress of treatment and adjust the plan as needed.
Psychiatric Conditions We Treat
Medication management is a safe and effective form of treatment for many different psychiatric conditions. We see patients experiencing a number of different disorders, including:
Anxiety
Depression
Bipolar disorder
ADHD
Substance use disorders
Posttraumatic stress disorder
Obsessive compulsive disorder
Dysthymia (persistent depressive disorder)
Seasonal affective disorder
Social phobia
Agoraphobia
Panic disorder
Schizophrenia
What to Expect During Outpatient Psychiatric Treatment
Initial Psychiatric Consultation
Our first 80-minute appointment will be spent going over your goals for treatment, reviewing a focused psychiatric history, discussing your diagnosis, and analyzing potential treatment plans and psychoeducation.
Regular Follow-Up Appointments
Regular follow-up visits will be 40 minutes in length. During these appointments, we will talk about whether or not your symptoms are improving, the pace of your progress, side effects you may be experiencing, and any other topics relevant to your treatment.
Based on these follow-up appointments, we may decide to maintain a steady course of treatment, adjust dosages, or switch medications, depending on the individual needs of each patient.
In the acute phase of treatment, most patients should come to our office monthly. After you have reached a state of relative stability, it is usually recommended to move visits out to every 3 months, and after a full year of stability, follow-ups may occur every 6 months. Our hope is that as treatment progresses successfully, many patients will be tapered off of medications entirely and not need to see us at all.
Additional Services
Questions Outside of Appointments
Questions concerning side effects and other non-complex questions can be answered via our patient portal, which you will be able to set up after your initial consultation. If your question requires some clarification, we will call you at the end of the clinical day. We will attempt to respond to all questions that come in before 11:30 a.m. by phone or portal by the end of the clinical day. Please put our office number as a contact in your phone so that you do not miss our calls.
Situations Requiring Emergency Treatment
After your initial consultation, you will be given an emergency phone number to call in case of a medical emergency. If you have a question regarding need for hospitalization or a severe side effect that cannot wait until the next business day, please call us. This is never a bother or a burden when you’re experiencing a true emergency, and your health and safety are our top priority.
For medication refills and other non-emergency questions, please contact us using the patient portal and we will respond to your needs as promptly as possible.
Services We Do Not Provide
Chronic Sedative/Benzodiazepine Treatment
Our practice does not prescribe chronic sedatives or benzodiazepines as part of our medication management services. While benzodiazepines are effective for the first few weeks of treatment, the brain develops a rapid defense mechanism against them that cancels out their effectiveness. Patients on benzodiazepines then continue to experience all the side effects, which can be dangerous, while also experiencing significant periods of anxiety, especially during the hour or two before the next dose.
We have seen success with slowly tapering patients off of these medications in order to treat their anxiety in different, safer ways. As with most treatments, focusing on living a full life is usually more effective than simple symptom alleviation.