Can a primary care doctor prescribe medicine for mental health issues or do they have to be a psychiatrist?

Answer:
Im sure most doctors are well qualified to hand out most types of drugs to anyone they want. My doctor happens to be a voodoo doctor (thats how he dresses anyway) and he has prescribed me all sorts of specialty drugs (valium, peyote, salvia), most of which he does before I even ask him. He really is a great guy. I would give you his number, but he skipped town last week. I will let you know when I see him again.

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yes /they /can

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yes they can, but they may refer you to have a psych consult if need be

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Yes they can. Unless you have a severe problem they will often try medication before they refer you on to a psychiatrist.

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A PC can write any drug there is. That in lies the problem. Too many PC's are writing Psych drugs they know nothing about. Shrinks should be seen if the person has MDD, PTSD, BP and really any major Mental Health issue.

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a primary care doctor is able to prescribe medication for mental health concerns. however, not all primary care physicians are willing to do so for all of the patients they work with - if a doctor feels that a person they are seeing needs more specialized help with medication than he or she is able to provide, then that doctor will be ethically required to refer the patient to a psychiatrist with more expertise in mental health concerns and the medications used to treat them.

think of it this way -- if you have high blood pressure, your primary care physician can give you medication to lower your blood pressure. the physician can give you advice about changing your diet or exercising more frequently to improve your overall health, which should, in turn, lower your blood pressure. but if your condition does not improve or if it gets worse, or if the doctor thinks that he or she is not equipped to handle the problem to the best of his or her medical ability, then they will refer you to a cardiologist. it's just the same with mental health concerns, except that the physician will refer someone to either a psychiatrist for medications or to a therapist (psychologist, social worker, licensed professional counselor, etc.) for psychotherapy.

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I've had some PCPs' who will prescribe anti depressants and anxiety drugs, but not anti psychotics, mood stabilizers or benzos. It really depends on the relationship the doctor has with the patient and how well they communicate. My doctor doesn't mind writing scripts for my medicine in between psych appts as long as he knows I'm following through with my T and Pdoc.

Good luck and take care of you!

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