Psychiatry

Psychiatry is the branch of medicine that diagnoses, treats, and studies mental illness and behavioral conditions. While all physicians will encounter patients with mental illnesses and any of them may treat it, psychiatrists specialize in these areas, being more extensively trained in the differential diagnosis (distinguishing various forms) and treatment of mental illness and are professionally required to keep up to date on the newest developments in the field of mental illness. Additionally psychologists, nurse practitioners, and social workers can provide psychiatric care though of these only the nurse practitioners may prescribe medication.

Psychiatrists in fiction

• Dr. Alistair Crown in Bernice Rubens' novel A Solitary Grief (1991)
• Dr. Dick Diver in F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel Tender is the Night
• Dr. Igor in Paulo Coelho's novel Veronika Decides to Die
• The radio talk-show presenter Dr Frasier Crane and his brother Dr. Niles Crane who appear in the sit-com Frasier
• Hannibal Lecter from Thomas Harris's books
• Dr. Laszlo Kreizler from The Alienist and The Angel of Darkness by Caleb Carr
• Dr. Tobias Funke in the sitcom Arrested Development
• Dr Peter Silberman (played by Earl Boen) in The Terminator series of films
• Dr. George Huang in played by actor B.D. Wong
• Dr. Andrey Yefimitch Ragin in Ward number 6 by Chekhov
• Dr. Marvin Monroe in The Simpsons