Patients like Lisa literally bring me down to earth and help me remember why I became a psychiatrist. As I puzzle over how to strengthen the doctor-patient bond, I try to plant the seeds that will allow Lisa to forego marijuana and other drugs for good. I encourage her to connect with others in her shoes by going to a support group, acknowledging my own deficits in knowing her experience but my desire to understand it as best I can. The connections I form with patients, especially the more challenging ones like Lisa, cannot be measured, and don’t have a reimbursement code, but they are priceless.
Dr. Morris is a psychiatrist at the University of Florida Counseling and Wellness Center in Gainesville and has provided clinical care to University of Florida students for the last 20 years. Her areas of specialty include depression, eating disorders, and anxiety disorders.