Curriculum and Schedule
Our residency features a comprehensive, developmentally structured didactic curriculum spanning all four years of training. The curriculum integrates foundational psychiatric knowledge, advanced clinical skills, systems-based practice, and professional development, preparing residents for modern psychiatric practice across diverse settings.
PGY-1 Didactics
Inpatient Psychiatry Boot Camp
This introductory course orients new residents to the core principles of inpatient psychiatric care. Topics include safety on the psychiatric unit, documentation, risk assessment, and team-based treatment approaches.
Introduction to Psychiatry
A broad overview of psychiatry, including its history, major theoretical frameworks, diagnostic principles, and evolving treatment models.
Introduction to Neurology
Residents learn the fundamentals of neurological examination and common neuropsychiatric conditions, with emphasis on clinical distinctions between psychiatric and neurological presentations.
History of Psychiatry
This course explores the evolution of psychiatric thought and treatment across time, examining scientific, cultural, and societal influences on the field.
Development and Maturation Across the Lifespan
Residents study biological, cognitive, and psychosocial development from childhood through late adulthood, gaining skills to differentiate typical development from psychopathology.
Beginning Trauma-Informed Care
An introduction to the principles of Trauma-Informed Care, focusing on the impact of trauma and approaches that promote healing, empowerment, and safety.
Psychopharmacology (PGY-1 & PGY-2)
A foundational course covering medication mechanisms, indications, side effects, and evidence-based prescribing. Teaching emphasizes rational medication use and applying pharmacology principles in clinical settings.
PGY-1 through PGY-4 Longitudinal Didactics
Departmental Grand Rounds
Journal Club
Morbidity and Mortality Conference
PRITE Examination Review
A yearly review series reinforcing foundational psychiatric knowledge and preparing residents for the PRITE examination.
Ethics and Professionalism
Residents examine core ethical principles and professional standards in psychiatry, including confidentiality, boundaries, cultural humility, and the care of vulnerable populations.
Quality Improvement and Patient Safety
A seminar exploring QI methods, patient-safety principles, and systems-based practice. Residents design and complete their own QI projects.
Wellness
A longitudinal curriculum promoting resilience, work-life balance, and strategies to recognize and prevent burnout.
Research and Scholarship Literacy
Residents gain foundational skills in research design, statistics, critical literature evaluation, and the development of scholarly projects.
Coordinated Lectures with Internal Medicine
Shared didactics with Internal Medicine residents covering interdisciplinary topics relevant to both fields.
Psychiatry Residency Program Rotation Schedule
Our Psychiatry Residency offers a balanced, community‑focused training experience built across four progressive years. Residents begin with a strong foundation in inpatient psychiatry, internal medicine, and neurology, followed by building on those skills in PGY-2 with emergency psychiatry, C‑L psychiatry, geriatrics, forensics, and child & adolescent psychiatry. PGY‑3 is dedicated entirely to comprehensive outpatient psychiatric care, allowing residents to develop autonomy, continuity, and therapeutic depth. Senior residents in PGY‑4 refine their clinical skills through targeted inpatient rotations, administrative experience, and a wide selection of electives while maintaining a longitudinal continuity clinic. Our curriculum emphasizes patient‑centered care, psychotherapy, interprofessional collaboration, and community engagement, preparing graduates for successful practice in a variety of clinical settings.
PGY‑1 – Internship Year
The intern year consists of 6 months of inpatient psychiatry, 4 months of outpatient and inpatient medicine, and 2 months of neurology.
Sample PGY-1 Schedule
PGY‑2 – Developing Core Psychiatric Skills
The PGY 2 year consists of 4 months of inpatient adult psychiatry, 3 months of consultation liaison, 2 months of emergency psychiatry, and 1 month each of child and adolescent, geriatric, and forensic psychiatry.
Sample PGY-2 Schedule
PGY‑3 – Outpatient Psychiatry Year
PGY 3 is outpatient psychiatry at Augusta Health with one half day per week at Valley Community Services Board for Community Psychiatry.
PGY‑4 – Senior Year & Electives
PGY 4 consists of 3 months of inpatient psychiatry as a senior resident and 1 month each of child and adolescent, addictions, and administrative psychiatry. You will have an outpatient Continuity Clinic ½‑day per week to continue to see some of your outpatients from 3rd year over a longer time span. In addition, there are 6 months of time for electives.
Sample PGY-4 Schedule
Elective Options
- Research
- Inpatient Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
- Forensic Psychiatry
- ECT / Interventional Psychiatry
- Consultation‑Liaison Psychiatry
- Emergency Psychiatry
- Pain Management
- Psychopharmacology Clinic
- Addiction Medicine
- Medical/ER
- Administrative Psychiatry
- Surgery / Anesthesiology
- Neurology
Vacation Policy
- PGY‑1 & PGY‑2:
- Vacation may be taken during General Inpatient Psychiatry blocks.
- PGY‑3 & PGY‑4:
- Vacation may be taken anytime during the academic year, with appropriate scheduling.