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Expert in Mental Health
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Many diverse mental health experts — from psychologists to psychiatrists to clinical social workers and others, are trained and equipped to give talk therapy for mental and emotional wellness. The amount of education and certification needed to practice a specialty, as well as the sorts of care that may be provided by a specialist, all differ. Depending on your problems and particular objectives, one kind may be a better option than another if you’re contemplating treatment.
If you want to know the difference between psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, counselors, and other mental health experts, here’s an overview.
Expert in Mental Health
Psychologist
Psychologists have the specialized education and clinical experience necessary to assist individuals in better managing life’s challenges and dilemmas, including those related to their mental health. They may conduct clinical interviews and psychological testing to determine a person’s mental health, as well as provide mental health diagnoses and offer group and individual treatment. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), and other strategies are taught to certain psychologists.
Before they may start working, licensed psychologists must complete many years of schooling and training under the guidance of an experienced mentor. It makes psychologists some of the most highly trained mental health professionals, who are often steeped in evidence-based techniques and research, explains Lynn Bufka, PhD, a licensed clinical psychologist and associate chief of practice transformation at the American Psychological Association (APA), where she works on healthcare policy issues and improving mental health care delivery.
Obtaining a graduate degree in psychology (two years for a master’s degree or four to six years for a doctorate degree) often contains courses in human behavior, development, personality, research, statistics, psychotherapy, evaluation, and ethics.
As Dr. Bufka notes, most jurisdictions require that aspiring psychologist complete 2,000 hours of supervised clinical practice before they may be granted a state license to practice. In certain jurisdictions psychologists may become licensed to provide medicine for mental health, however in many states, psychologists cannot dispense pharmaceuticals.
Degrees or Training Do They Require?
Psychologists must possess a doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) in a discipline of psychology, a doctor of psychology (PsyD), or a doctor of education (EdD) in most states in order to be eligible for a license to operate independently as a clinical psychologist. Master’s degree holders in psychology may be able to call themselves “psychologists” in several jurisdictions.
In Pakistan, Those who have 16 years of Education (BS Psychology or MSc Psychology) work as Psychologists.
License Are Necessary for Them?
To practice psychology, you need to obtain a license from your state’s licensing board. Aside from educational requirements, you must pass a 225-question multiple-choice exam that covers key topics of psychology, such as evaluation and diagnosis, and social and biological underpinnings of behavior.
In Pakistan, Currently, no legal body to provide the license.
Where They Work
The majority of psychologists in practice run their own private practices or collaborate with a team of other mental health psychologists. Psychologists may also work at schools, colleges, universities, hospitals, medical clinics, jails, correctional institutions, veterans’ medical centers, mental health clinics, companies, nursing homes, Forces, and long-term care centers.
Psychiatrist
Psychiatrists are medical specialists specialized in treating mental health concerns and diseases. Psychiatrists may prescribe and manage medication, which sets them apart from the majority of other mental health practitioners. Some psychiatrists give conventional talk therapy in addition to medicinal treatment. Some have undergone extra training and specialize in child and adolescent mental health, drug use problems, or geriatric psychiatry.
Psychiatrists are physicians by training, argues Christine Crawford, MD, associate medical director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) (NAMI). In addition to mental health, psychiatrists are trained in the physiology of how the body functions and psychopharmacology (or drug treatment for mental disease), she explains.
“We understand underlying physical disorders that might have mental manifestations,” says Dr. Crawford, who is also an adult and child psychiatrist and assistant professor of psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine. Psychiatrists may request testing to rule out any underlying medical conditions because of their background as doctors. She claims that doctors who have received training in psychopharmacology are better equipped to provide medications that are in line with their patients’ underlying medical issues.
Degrees or Training Do They Require?
Medical school and a four-year residency in psychiatric training are prerequisites for becoming a psychiatrist. MDs and DOs are required to practice as psychiatrists. A residency often comprises rotations in numerous essential fields, such as neurology and internal medicine.
License Are Necessary for Them?
After finishing a psychiatry residency program, you must take the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) certification test and gain board certification to become professionally qualified as a psychiatrist.
Where They Work
Private practice, general and psychiatric hospitals, medical centers affiliated with universities, community agencies, courts and prisons, long-term care facilities, state and federal agencies, as well as educational institutions, and the military all employ psychiatrists. They can also be found in outpatient clinics, psychiatric emergency rooms, and hospice care facilities.
Social Worker
Social workers support individuals by helping them deal with concerns in their daily lives, better manage their relationships, and handle personal and family problems, according to the National Association of Social Workers. Social workers are qualified to make mental health diagnoses and provide talk therapy, but they are not permitted to use medications to treat mental illness.
A key distinction between them and other mental health professionals is that social workers are trained to specialize in helping clients who face disabilities, life-threatening diseases, or social problems, such as inadequate housing, unemployment, substance abuse, or domestic conflict (though you don’t need to be facing one of these issues to seek help from a social worker).
One of New York City’s most prominent social workers, Liz Morrison, LCSW, notes that social workers are taught to go beyond the individual they’re dealing with and their own mental and emotional health in order to consider their surroundings as well. “We give treatment but we can also aid with other resources, including linking patients with other clinicians in the community to help impact better outcomes.”
Degrees or Training Do They Require?
A master’s degree in social work is required before a person may practice social work in a clinical setting (MSW).
License Are Necessary for Them?
To get licensed to practice social work, someone must complete the licensing standards in their state. These designations might include licensed clinical social worker (LCSW), licensed independent social worker (LICSW), or academy of certified social worker (ACSW) (ACSW). They vary by state, but typically to get licensed a social worker must have first acquired a master of social work degree, record many hours of clinical practice and supervised training, and complete the licensing test.
Where They Work
Social workers are employed by schools, hospitals, mental health clinics, seniors’ centers, private practices, jails, military, companies, and public and private institutions, according to Morrison.
Counselor
According to Lynn Linde, EdD, chief knowledge officer at the American Counseling Association, mental health counselors are educated to address a wide range of illnesses, including anxiety, depression, drug and alcohol dependency, and eating disorders. They may also assist if you’re suffering from concerns that don’t come with a diagnosis, such as financial worries, stress from work, or relationship troubles. Counselors may also specialize in a certain patient demographic, including kids, young families, or the elderly.
They can diagnose mental diseases, but they cannot prescribe medicine. Many specialize in treating a specific problem, such as drug misuse, sexual abuse, marriage and relationships, or family therapy.
Degrees or Training Do They Require?
In order to work as a counselor, you’ll need at least a master’s degree.
Licenses Are Necessary for Them?
To work as a counselor, someone must obtain a license in their state. As a result, state-by-state regulations govern licensures such as “licensed professional counselor” (LPC), “licensed professional clinical counselor,” and “licensed mental health counselor,” among other designations. A master’s degree in counseling or a counseling-related subject is frequently necessary before a license may be obtained, as is completing supervised counseling hours. An NCC is a board-certified therapist who has a master’s degree in counseling and is a member of the American Association of Clinical Counselors.
Where They Work
Like other therapists, counselors operate in a number of contexts, including in private practice, hospitals, within the judicial system, school system, or in group homes.
Marriage and Family Therapist
Family therapists, as the term indicates, work with individuals, families, and groups to address a broad variety of challenges, such as difficulties in parent-child relationships, marital dissension, and mental marriage disorders like depression or alcoholism. As defined by the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, marriage and family therapy is expected to be short-term, solution-focused, and precise (with clear therapeutic objectives in mind).
Some treatment is one-on-one, while at other times couples or family members go through counseling together. Therapists who specialize in marriage and family therapy may identify and treat mental health issues, but they are not permitted to prescribe medications.
Degrees or Training Do They Require?
To become a marriage and family therapist, someone must first receive a master’s or doctorate degree in marriage and family therapy or a related subject, such as psychology, psychiatry, social work, nursing, pastoral counseling, or education.
License Are Necessary for Them?
A master’s or doctorate degree, two years of post-degree supervised clinical practice, and passing a state licensing test are all requirements for becoming an accredited licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT). States may have different criteria for obtaining a license.
Where They Work
In addition to private practices and outpatient clinics, marriage and family therapists may also be found working in institutions such as schools, drug misuse treatment institutes, and medical centers.
Summary
The amount of education and certification needed to practice a specialty, as well as the sorts of care that may be provided, all differ. Licensed psychologists must complete many years of schooling and training under the guidance of an experienced mentor. Some jurisdictions require that aspiring psychologists complete 2,000 hours of supervised clinical practice. Psychiatrists are medical specialists specialized in treating mental health concerns and diseases. Psychiatrists may prescribe and manage medication, which sets them apart from the majority of other mental health practitioners.
Some have undergone extra training and specialize in child and adolescent mental health, drug use problems, or geriatric psychiatry. Social workers support individuals by helping them deal with concerns in their daily lives. They are qualified to make mental health diagnoses and provide talk therapy, but they are not permitted to use medications to treat mental illness. Social workers are trained to specialize in helping clients who face disabilities, life-threatening diseases, or social problems. Mental health counselors are educated to address a wide range of illnesses.
They can diagnose mental diseases, but they cannot prescribe medicine. Many specialize in treating a specific problem, such as drug misuse or sexual abuse. A master’s degree in counseling or a counseling-related subject is frequently necessary before a license. Therapists who specialize in marriage and family therapy may identify and treat mental health issues, but they are not permitted to prescribe medications. Treatment is expected to be short-term, solution-focused, and precise (with clear therapeutic objectives in mind). Some treatment is one-on-one, while at other times couples or family members go through counseling together.
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