What does an Outpatient Psychiatrist do?
Outpatient psychiatrists are medical professionals who are responsible for providing diagnosis, treatment, and prevention plans for outpatients with mental health problems as well as substance use disorders. These psychiatrists are required to supervise psychiatry residents with outpatient psychotherapy and medication management while working with patients at the psychiatry wards. They must coordinate with insurance providers so that they can provide all the required information that is necessary to process payments for patient care. Outpatient psychiatrists must also supervise clinical professionals who are involved in mental health such as social workers and behavioral health technicians.
Outpatient psychiatrist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real outpatient psychiatrist resumes:
- Research of medical management using motivational interviewing and psychotherapy with Hispanic patients treating depression and anxiety disorders.
- Conduct full neurological evaluation, including lab, MRI & /or EEG.
Outpatient psychiatrist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 44% of Outpatient Psychiatrists are proficient in Medication Management, EMR, and Outpatient Clinic. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Detail oriented, and Leadership skills.
We break down the percentage of Outpatient Psychiatrists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Medication Management, 44%
Provided outpatient psychotherapy and medication management supervision to psychiatry residents
- EMR, 29%
Document imagining in Patient Trac EMR.
- Outpatient Clinic, 22%
Worked on the inpatient ward in the morning and outpatient clinic in the afternoon.
- Detox, 4%
Obtained extensive experience working with and treating Detox and Rehabilitation patients.
- Psychopharmacology, 2%
Provided psychopharmacology and individual, family, and parental therapy to children and their families.
"medication management," "emr," and "outpatient clinic" are among the most common skills that outpatient psychiatrists use at work. You can find even more outpatient psychiatrist responsibilities below, including:
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for an outpatient psychiatrist to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what outpatient psychiatrists do because "physicians and surgeons need to be excellent communicators." Additionally, an outpatient psychiatrist resume shows how outpatient psychiatrists use communication skills: "used therapeutic communication techniques to establish rapport, and deliver care to mentally ill patients. "
Detail oriented. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling outpatient psychiatrist duties is detail oriented. The role rewards competence in this skill because "patients must receive appropriate treatment and medications." According to an outpatient psychiatrist resume, here's how outpatient psychiatrists can utilize detail oriented in their job responsibilities: "team oriented treatment given by mds, psychologists, social workers, nurses, case managers and other therapists. "
Leadership skills. This is an important skill for outpatient psychiatrists to perform their duties. For an example of how outpatient psychiatrist responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "physicians who work in their own practice must manage a staff of other professionals." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of an outpatient psychiatrist: "initial psychiatric evaluations, psychotropic medication management, crisis stabilization and leadership of the treatment team approach to patient care. ".
Physical stamina. For certain outpatient psychiatrist responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "physical stamina." The day-to-day duties of an outpatient psychiatrist rely on this skill, as "physicians and surgeons should be comfortable lifting or turning disabled patients, or performing other physical tasks." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what outpatient psychiatrists do: "worked closely with behavioral therapist, psychiatrist, physical therapists and occupational therapists to provide best patient care. "
The three companies that hire the most outpatient psychiatrists are:
- The Medicus Firm
149 outpatient psychiatrists jobs
- American Medical Association87 outpatient psychiatrists jobs
- Eating Recovery Center24 outpatient psychiatrists jobs
Compare different outpatient psychiatrists
Outpatient 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.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an outpatient psychiatrist are more likely to require skills like "emr," "epic," "leadership," and "mental illnesses." On the other hand, a job as a child & adolescent psychiatrist requires skills like "patient care," "c," "board certification," and "mental illness." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Child & adolescent psychiatrists tend to make the most money working in the health care industry, where they earn an average salary of $220,281. In contrast, outpatient psychiatrists make the biggest average salary, $210,992, in the health care industry.On average, child & adolescent psychiatrists reach similar levels of education than outpatient psychiatrists. Child & adolescent psychiatrists are 2.7% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 12.5% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Outpatient psychiatrist vs. Clinical psychiatrist
A child psychiatrist specializes in diagnosing and treating behavioral and psychological issues of children. They develop treatment plans through various assessments and examinations, prescribing medication as needed. Their responsibilities include conducting therapies in an individual or group setting, coordinating with parents and guardians to keep them updated on all procedures and progress, providing consultations for social services and court proceedings, and helping families cope and understand the patient's situation. Furthermore, as a child therapist, it is essential to build rapport with patients, making them feel comfortable every step of the way.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real outpatient psychiatrist resumes. While outpatient psychiatrist responsibilities can utilize skills like "medication management," "child psychiatry," "emr," and "epic," clinical psychiatrists use skills like "mental illness," "practice nurses," "hiv," and "medical health."
In general, clinical psychiatrists achieve higher levels of education than outpatient psychiatrists. They're 23.6% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 12.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Outpatient psychiatrist vs. Child psychiatrist
A Psychiatrist is a medical practitioner specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness. They treat patients utilizing psychotherapeutic methods and medications.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an outpatient psychiatrist is likely to be skilled in "child psychiatry," "emr," "outpatient clinic," and "epic," while a typical child psychiatrist is skilled in "adolescent psychiatry," "mental health," "health treatment," and "medical education."
Child psychiatrists earn the best pay in the health care industry, where they command an average salary of $204,719. Outpatient psychiatrists earn the highest pay from the health care industry, with an average salary of $210,992.child psychiatrists typically earn higher educational levels compared to outpatient psychiatrists. Specifically, they're 8.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 18.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Outpatient psychiatrist vs. Psychiatrist
Types of outpatient psychiatrist
Updated January 8, 2025
