What is the Difference Between a Psychiatrist & a Psychologist? - Dr. Kiran Kumar K

Dr. Kiran Kumar K | Appointment booking number: +91-9663516934
Consultant Psychiatrist & Director | The Nirvana Center, Marathahalli, Bangalore
Both Psychiatrist & a Psychologist are mental health professionals. There are a lot of confusions regarding both the professional not only among general public, but also along other non mental health professionals. So I would like to tell a couple of points.
Who is a Psychiatrist? A Psychiatrist who has specialized in the field of Psychiatry after his MBBBS degree. It can be a degree or a diploma in Psychiatry. He can have subspecialisation and superspecialisations in the area of Addiction Psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatry, Geriatric Psychiatry, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and so on. So basically he is a medical doctor who probably has a special degree in Psychiatry.
What can I do? He can definitely treat with various Psychiatric illnesses, the illnesses of the mid and the brain. He can give medications, psychotropic medications. He can deal with various comorbidities. He can also help in various psychotherapeutic measures, be it cognitive behavior, be it supportive psychotherapy, be it interpersonal therapy. He or she is also well versed in treating Psychiatric illnesses by various biological means by various electroconvulsive therapy, transcranial magnetic stimulation etc.
Who is a Psychologist ? a Psychologist is a non medical professional who has an M.Phil or a post doctoral degree in the area of psychology, that is the science that deals with human mind and behavior. They cannot prescribe medications , but however they are well versed with clinical management in the areas of psychodynamics and psychotherapeutics. Both psychiatrists and psychologists work as a team in most of the hospitals and they perform together a s mental health team.