* to provide a medical evaluation for complaints that sometimes have a physical basis
* to give assistance especially by means of psychoanalysis and by means of an increasing number of alternative therapies
* to help patients with medication to acquire a degree of emotional equilibrium that will allow them to begin to solve personal problems so that, in time, they may no longer require medication
Although an M.D. may call herself or himself a psychiatrist, most psychiatrists have had specialized advanced training in psychiatry. Full qualifications involve completion of a residency in psychiatry, full membership in the American Psychiatric Association, completion of a program of study at an institute of psychotherapy, and board certification. Many psychiatrists who practice are eligible for board certification but simply have not yet taken the national examinations that are required in order to be certified by a national examining board. Although apparently many of us need to be reassured of this, you need not feel that there is anything wrong or embarrassing about asking a prospective psychiatrist, or his or her secretary, to describe the doctor's background and training.
FEES
At the time of this writing, the fees of psychiatrists in private practice range approximately from $75 up to $100 and occasionally more per session. Private psychiatric assistance is therefore largely reserved for the fairly well-to-do or for those who have health insurance with substantial psychiatric benefits.
Fortunately, psychiatric care is available through many agencies; those that are run by counties and states normally have sliding scales (some private agencies will also take an individual's finances into account when setting fees). Rates for consultation with a psychiatrist at a public agency can be very reasonable (as little as a few dollars per visit, depending on the patient's income). This makes the services of psychiatrists available to those with modest or low incomes.
DURATION OF TREATMENT
If a psychiatrist finds that an emotional problem has a physical basis, or that it is due to biochemical depletion or imbalance in the body, successful treatment may be relatively short, sometimes a matter of a few months.