What does a geriatric psychiatrist do?
The mental health of the elderly can be delicate, and that is why a geriatric psychiatrist is important. Their job specialty is the diagnosis and treatment of mental and emotional disorders in elderly people. They are also required to prevent, evaluate, and improve psychiatric care for both healthy and ill older patients. These older patients will likely fall under the range of 65 years of age and above.
Geriatric psychiatrist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real geriatric psychiatrist resumes:
- Implement individualized care plans, using a variety of treatments to stabilize patients during their hospitalization.
- Conduct full neurological evaluation, including lab, MRI & /or EEG.
Geriatric psychiatrist skills and personality traits
We break down the percentage of Geriatric Psychiatrists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Nursing Home, 60%
Manage all 6 Nursing homes for CMH located in 5 different towns.
- Medication Management, 40%
Provided care to patients including taking vitals, pain management, respiratory therapy, medication management, and oxygen concentrators.
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for a geriatric psychiatrist to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what geriatric psychiatrists do because "physicians and surgeons need to be excellent communicators." Additionally, a geriatric psychiatrist resume shows how geriatric psychiatrists use communication skills: "used therapeutic communication techniques to establish rapport, and deliver care to mentally ill patients. "
Detail oriented. Many geriatric psychiatrist duties rely on detail oriented. "patients must receive appropriate treatment and medications," so a geriatric psychiatrist will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways geriatric psychiatrist responsibilities rely on detail oriented: "conduct behavior modification and supportive and insight oriented psychotherapy with patients. "
Leadership skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of geriatric psychiatrists is leadership skills. This skill is critical to many everyday geriatric psychiatrist duties, as "physicians who work in their own practice must manage a staff of other professionals." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "initial psychiatric evaluations, psychotropic medication management, crisis stabilization and leadership of the treatment team approach to patient care. "
Physical stamina. A big part of what geriatric psychiatrists do relies on "physical stamina." You can see how essential it is to geriatric psychiatrist responsibilities because "physicians and surgeons should be comfortable lifting or turning disabled patients, or performing other physical tasks." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical geriatric psychiatrist tasks: "worked closely with behavioral therapist, psychiatrist, physical therapists and occupational therapists to provide best patient care. "
The three companies that hire the most geriatric psychiatrists are:
- The Medicus Firm
37 geriatric psychiatrists jobs
- Cambridge Health Alliance3 geriatric psychiatrists jobs
- Hebrew SeniorLife3 geriatric psychiatrists jobs
Compare different geriatric psychiatrists
Geriatric psychiatrist vs. Child & adolescent psychiatrist
Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists are mental health professionals who deal with children and adolescent individuals. Much like most psychiatrists, they are trained to handle individuals with mental health concerns. They are important in the diagnosis of mental health problems and the treatment of these problems. They specialize in diagnosing and treating children and adolescents. Child and adolescent psychiatrists are equipped with the skills to communicate with their clients effectively. This helps them identify the problems or mental health challenges that their clients are going through. Upon diagnosis of mental health problems, child and adolescent psychiatrists work with their clients to help ease their mental health problems and possibly treat them in the long run.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between geriatric psychiatrists and child & adolescent psychiatrist. For instance, geriatric psychiatrist responsibilities require skills such as "nursing home," "psychiatry services," "discharge summaries," and "internal medicine." Whereas a child & adolescent psychiatrist is skilled in "child psychiatry," "patient care," "c," and "board certification." This is part of what separates the two careers.
On average, child & adolescent psychiatrists reach similar levels of education than geriatric psychiatrists. Child & adolescent psychiatrists are 1.4% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 2.4% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Geriatric psychiatrist vs. Consulting psychiatrist
A Staff Psychiatrist provides psychiatric services for the treatment of patients with mental health problems in an outpatient and/or inpatient setting. They are also responsible for supervising and training advanced psychiatry residents.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that geriatric psychiatrist responsibilities requires skills like "nursing home," "psychiatry services," "ehr," and "discharge summaries." But a consulting psychiatrist might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "board certification," "substance abuse," "behavioral health," and "mental illness."
Consulting psychiatrists earn lower levels of education than geriatric psychiatrists in general. They're 7.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 2.4% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Geriatric psychiatrist vs. Staff psychiatrist
An adult psychiatrist is responsible for diagnosing adults with mental health illnesses and determine accurate treatment plans to provide quality care services for the patients according to their needs. Adult psychiatrists conduct regular counseling for the patients, administer medications, and record progress. They also handle laboratory tests, design therapy sessions, and coordinate with other medical professionals for other medical procedures. An adult psychiatrist must have excellent communication and knowledge of the medical industry to accurately determine the patients' conditions and verify their response to treatments.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a geriatric psychiatrist is likely to be skilled in "nursing home," "psychiatry services," "ehr," and "discharge summaries," while a typical staff psychiatrist is skilled in "patients," "rehabilitation," "dea," and "patient care."
Staff psychiatrists typically earn similar educational levels compared to geriatric psychiatrists. Specifically, they're 4.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 11.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Geriatric psychiatrist vs. Adult psychiatrist
Types of geriatric psychiatrist
Updated January 8, 2025
