Psychopharmacology and Bipolar Disorder | Harvard Psychiatrist Explains

Dr. Yalun Zhang, a Harvard-trained psychiatrist, interviews Dr. David Osser, author of the Psychopharmacology Algorithms Textbook. Dr. David Osser's Titles and Experience: Lead Psychiatrist of the VA National Bipolar Disorders Telehealth Program Medical Director for Domiciliary Care for Homeless Veterans Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School Former President of the Massachusetts Psychiatric Society ('01-'02) Dr. Osser received his undergraduate degree in Chemistry from Amherst College, Cum laude and his medical degree from the State University of New York at Syracuse. He then did his internship at LA County-University of Southern California Medical Center and his Psychiatry residency at the Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts Mental Health Center residency program where he served as Chief Resident in the Somatic Therapy Program. Dr. Osser is on the editorial boards of the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology and Psychiatric Times among others. Dr. Osser is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. He received the Exemplary Psychiatrist Award from NAMI and was cited for compassionate and dedicated care of the seriously mentally ill by the Alliance for the Mentally Ill of Massachusetts. He recieved the 2015 Stuart Hauser, MD Mentorship Award in Psychiatry of Harvard Medical School’s Psychiatry Executive Committee. 00:00 Intro 00:51 What’s Commonly Misunderstood About Psych Meds? 03:16 What Should Patients Ask About Their Psych Meds? 05:34 Why So Much Trial and Error With Psych Meds? 07:44 How To Know If A Paper Is High Quality? 14:16 Underutilized Psychopharmacology Evidence 17:11 How Does Dr. Osser Build His Algorithms? 19:41 Most Misunderstood Risk Benefit Tradeoff 23:50 Antidepressants For Bipolar Depression? 30:44 How Has Psychopharmacology Changed During Dr. Osser’s Career? 35:25 What Will We Look Back On In 10-20 Years And Realize We Were Wrong About? 39:14 If All Psych Meds Disappeared Tomorrow, Which Would Dr. Osser Save?