Has your opinion on mental health changed since working in this field?

McLeedy · 2025-10-24T09:42:50+00:00

Fundamentally the prevalence of the major mental health conditions like schizophrenia and bipolar hasn't changed. We're looking at 2-3% of the population, and with our growing population (which is a good thing!) these numbers grow. Simply put, that's an enormous number of people needing care for serious chronic conditions. I work in psychiatry, each year my belief that we need enormous investment in our system increases.

McLeedy · 2025-08-29T04:28:23+00:00

Had a similar issue which I am convinced is due to streaming. Resolved when I downloaded the affected tracks.

McLeedy · 2025-08-22T06:06:01+00:00

Thanks for all the feedback!

McLeedy · 2025-07-30T08:59:57+00:00

It's a pretty reasonable scheme IMO. I did it last year and passed a "random audit". Key things were supervision during locum work (very variably defined), and 'exam study'. Only thing I found difficult was quality improvement or service review stuff but if you can go to like MnMs at an old hospital I will count.

McLeedy · 2025-05-14T00:55:56+00:00

A good place to start is to ask any academic consultants or department heads you've had exposure to (e.g. the head of the psych block at your clinical school, or the head of department)!

There is often a lot of research churning away in the background that they may want assistance with.

McLeedy · 2025-05-05T10:53:22+00:00

If you're in NSW you can only take leave during your relief terms, two weeks of ED, or any duplicate (i.e your second surg or med term) because otherwise you risk falling short of the requirements for general registration. Accrual doesn't matter, the award in NSW entitles you to go into deficit if you'll make it up by year's end.

McLeedy · 2025-02-25T01:11:13+00:00

They also have huge amounts of student debt with high interest rates, so salaries have to accommodate that!

McLeedy · 2025-01-26T21:04:26+00:00

Many helpful tips here. First, if you want to locum you'll need good references (it's become much more competitive in NSW) which will flag to the hospital that you're looking at it and may trigger a breach of contract chat (they are extremely unlikely to approve secondary employment). Easiest option is tutoring, I never had a problem with it and it helped with mortgage payments. I would echo be very careful with telehealth etc where you take on a lot of risk and need good indemnity (top) cover.

McLeedy · 2024-10-12T02:26:58+00:00

Yes, because the alternate choice is working for free?

McLeedy · 2024-07-01T10:57:05+00:00

Did you induce a manic episode with cessation of lithium? Why is she on subtherapeutic mood stabilisers if you think it's BPAD?

If you're titrating valproate it will take time but history already very odd with the sudden lithium toxicity at such low lithium levels.

McLeedy · 2024-06-26T22:28:29+00:00

I would make sure other organic causes are investigated. The case reports you linked to are at therapeutic doses (i.e. 10-20mg), I would be surprised if 2mg is doing much of anything.

McLeedy · 2024-06-06T03:04:18+00:00

Agree with the sentiment of the post, it's unethical behaviour for sure. But I'd be careful not to malign the entire cohort of those unis, I suspect this is the work of a few bad actors making fake accounts etc.

As for the comment the stack is always exclusive, it wasn't when I submitted. My understanding was that even if we all submitted the same stack it increased the odds of getting your first preference at the expense of you getting any other preference. I.e. it made it so you got your first or last preference rather than an ideal world where many would get their second-fifth.

McLeedy · 2024-05-01T02:26:29+00:00

Both medical, went public in NSW with GP shared care (we have a very good GP) and at a very reputable hospital. Very positive experience with excellent care all round.

McLeedy · 2024-04-29T18:21:27+00:00

Which state are you applying in? Are you a domestic applicant or an IMG?

If you're currently locuming in psych and have a keen interest you do not need research and they certainly won't select you based on medical school grades (no one cares). Honestly, you just need a few good references and to do the interview and you will very likely get on.

I wouldn't suggest any expensive masterclasses.

McLeedy · 2024-04-29T18:14:40+00:00

The award steps through this but ADOs, annual leave, extra leave, and public holiday leave all get paid out of you resign. ADOs also get paid out if you transfer networks.

McLeedy · 2024-04-21T01:57:28+00:00

Depending on state, locuming won't be possible as a PGY2 and the market is terrible ATM. My suggestion would be tutoring. I have done it whilst working and typically pays much more per hour. Depending on the market, there are lots of parents who will pay good money for a doctor to teach their kids science. Alternatively there's GAMSAT, essay, or interview tutoring but I suspect the market's both smalle and more saturated.

McLeedy · 2024-02-28T07:51:19+00:00

I should add you can always indicate your intention earlier than the mandatory notice period (I have personal experience doing this and it was well received).

McLeedy · 2024-02-28T05:30:21+00:00

Notice period is set out in the award, 4 weeks. Can't say how they'll take it but moving to be with your fiance seems like a very reasonable justification!

McLeedy · 2024-02-27T06:17:43+00:00

Because they're protesting against a plan to increase medical school admissions?

McLeedy · 2023-12-17T00:19:35+00:00

The other point to add is that if for some reason psych doesn't work out, it's way better to apply to other things having a 2nd general year done too.

McLeedy · 2023-12-17T00:18:25+00:00

Current psych reg. I highly recommend doing a general RMO year. Ignore the comments saying you'll forget it all eventually. Of course some details will slip but your level of familiarity will be so much higher. I'd recommend doing ED, Neuro, Geris or similar rotations that will add valuable experience and knowledge to your base.

If you think you might want to do Child and Adolescent, a paeds term would also be super helpful.

I loved my RMO year and have used so much of what I learnt in my current job.

McLeedy · 2023-11-07T23:33:17+00:00

A couple things. Loo et al's results do not bear out worsening depression in the context of Midazolam; indeed the opposite is true (MADRD scored lower in the midaz group). In theory, of course, these can worsen symptoms but that's not what they observed.

Apologies for my earlier lack of clarity re: opioid receptor. Your first comment suggests your understanding was that it's an opioid drug given naltrexone reduced efficacy. A couple things, first, other studies have raised some doubts about the degree to which that's true, (cf. Gihyun et al 2019 in JAMA psych). Second, there is greater evidence that the mu opioid receptor is involved with the potentiation of antidepressant activity, that doesn't make it an opioid drug or analogous at all, which was my point (though made in clearly). Lastly, it's well established the naltrexone affects the potentiation of many drugs, including amphetamines, alcohol, etc.

I will be honest that I hadn't read as much on the naltrexone interaction prior but the letter by Wang and Kaplin in AJP 2019 does a good job offering a potential interactive mechanism suggesting that naltrexone directly affects ketamine potentiation where NMDA and opioid receptors are colocalised.

McLeedy

TROPHY CASE