General Psychiatry Consultation-Liaison Service
Medical Director: John Smith, MD
Faculty and Professional Staff:
Michael Caucci, MD
Beto Arriola, MD, MPH
Daniel Daunis, MD
Ron Cowan, MD, PhD
Jo Ellen Wilson, MD, MPH
Cory Myers, PMHNP
Service: Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry (CLP) is a subspecialty of psychiatric practice focused on the management of behavioral conditions in patients with other medical and surgical problems. Clinicians trained in CLP have expertise in treating a wide variety of conditions that affect patients with chronic and complex illness, with specific focus on the interplay between physiologic illness and behavioral symptoms. The General Psychiatry Consultation Service at Vanderbilt University Medical Center is responsible for over 4,500 consultations within the medical center yearly, assisting other medical services in managing problems such as delirium, depression, traumatic brain injury, stroke, aggression and violence, suicidal behavior, dementia, and difficulty coping with illness. The service provides value to patients by alleviating psychological suffering, to other medical providers by addressing barriers to effective management of general medical problems, and to the hospital system by assisting with appropriate disposition and safety planning for medically and psychiatrically complex patients.
Education: The consultation service serves as the primary CLP training site for PGY-2 psychiatry residents, and the primary general psychiatric training site for neurology residents at Vanderbilt. Medical students during their second year clerkships also rotate on the service, and it remains a popular choice for advanced medical students seeking additional training in psychiatry. Due to it’s unique position at the cross section of psychiatric and medical practice, the General Psychiatry Consultation Service is also a sought after elective rotation for medical trainees in other specialties and disciplines with interest in expanding their ability to manage comorbid psychiatric and medical conditions.