Department of Psychiatry

General Psychiatry Residency Overview

Dr. Debra Katz has been with the department since 1996 and brings a broad range of experience to psychiatry training. She is quadruple boarded in Pediatrics, Neurology, General Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and has pursued advanced training in psychoanalysis. Dr. Katz actively teaches and supervises residents and commits 100% of her time to residency training.

On July 1, 2008 Dr. Cletus Carvalho will assume directorship of the General Psychiatry Residency program. He has been with the Department since February 2005, as Assistant Professor & Medical Director of UK Medical Center’s Inpatient Psychiatry Unit and is currently the Associate Residency Program Director. Prior to joining the UK Department of Psychiatry Dr. Carvalho held administrative and clinical positions while working in South Eastern Kentucky. He is board-certified in General Psychiatry, Geriatric Psychiatry and Psychosomatic Medicine. Like all UK Psychiatry faculty Dr. Carvalho is committed to delivering excellence in the education and supervision of Psychiatry residents.

Our residents come from throughout the United States and share a passion for learning, advocacy, service and research. They are extraordinarily committed to their patients and are extremely supportive of one another lending our program a “family” feel. The latter in fact has been a major reason why new candidates join our program. In addition resident participation and involvement is encouraged and expected in all clinical and administrative aspects of the residency program. An example of this is the exhaustive work done every year towards new resident recruitment wherein current residents deliver the most input.

Every year our residents win national competitions and hold prominent positions within psychiatric organizations. Currently, one of our residents, Vincent Blanch MD PhD, is Mentor to the Assembly Committee Members-in-Training (ACOM) and to Committee of Residents and Fellows (CORF) of the American Psychiatric Association. In the recent past, Vince served as Chair of ACOM and was also the Area 5 member-in-training representative. Vince also currently serves on the Committee of the Kentucky Physician's Health Foundation (KPHF), the group that evaluates and monitors impaired physicians in Kentucky. He is currently working on a joint collaboration between KPHF and the KPMA to produce professional video on the issue of impaired physicians. Another resident, Marc Cruser MD received the American Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) Educational Outreach Program award for travel expenses to the AACAP annual meeting in Boston along with an opportunity to participate in a mentorship program, networking sessions, and other educational programs specifically for awardees. A recent graduate and current faculty member, Jeffrey Tuttle MD was selected as Fellow of the American Psychoanalytic Association for the 2007-08 year. This is an extremely competitive award established to provide outstanding early-career psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and academics with exposure to psychoanalysis. Brian Dixon, MD, one of our Triple Board residents recently won the APA/Shire Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship Award. Brian joins Tyanne Dosh, MD, a current PGY II Psychiatry resident who won this award in 2007. This award was given to 6 residents every year from around the U.S., who show potential to make significant contributions and become future leaders in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Our training program emphasizes close relationships between faculty and residents with daily opportunities for observation and feedback. Teaching occurs at clinical sites, in multiple seminars and in individual supervision. Residents refine their skills in listening and understanding patients and have ample opportunities to develop their skills in psychotherapy. On completion of training, residents have a range of clinical and educational experiences that enable them to understand and treat mental illness from a multidimensional perspective.