Psychiatry Faculty / Medical Staff >

The Department of Psychiatry is in charge of the diagnosis and treatment of the behavior, thinking, and emotions of humans. It is known that complex factors, including biologic abnormalities of the central nervous system, psychodynamics, and social psychology, interact to cause various psychologic disorders such as major depression disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, panid disorder, dementia, and learning and developmental disroders.

The Department of Psychiatry at the Samsung Medical Center provides integrated treatment through close co-operation of around 100 medical personnel, including physicians, nurses, clinical psychologists, occupational therapists, experts in specialized education, and social workers. We are also conducting basic and clinical research in the field of biologic psychiatry; treating major neuropsychiatric disorders including schizophrenia, bipolar disorders, major depression disorders, panic disorders, dementia, and learning and developmental disorders in pediatric patients; and actively performing psychotherapy and cognitive-behavior therapy, in order to play a leading role in medical care, research and education.

Major areas of treatment / Clinics

1. General Psychiatry, Pediatric Psychiatry

We have specialized faculty to provide top-notch medical services for various mental disorders including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety disorder, personality disorder, dementia, sleep disorder and stress disorder.

Strength

Our pediatric section has 1 professor for special care and 2 clinical fellows who are specialized in psychiatric treatment of child and adolescent. Our faculty helps children develop normally and adjust well to their families, schools and communities by assessing, diagnosing and treating their mental challenges professionally. Our scope of care includes treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, developmental disability, emotional disturbance and learning disorder by means of psychological treatment, medication, speech therapy, and parental support.

Our depression center has a one-stop care system that delivers prompt patient assessment and psychological testing so that they can be diagnosed and treated in a timely manner. The depression center is Korea's first psychiatric clinic that exclusively focuses on depression. We are dedicated to providing excellent clinical care as well as conducting clinically informative innovative research. Our highly specialized multidisciplinary staffs provide quality clinical care to all patients who visited our clinic in collaboration with various medical professionals including staffs from the departments of internal medicine and obstetrics and gynecology. Since opening in January 16 2009, our center has treated 8,469 patients (as of May 2011) and the number of the patients benefiting from our best-in-kind care is on the increase, recently one thousand depression patients per month. Our psycho-oncology clinic was founded in May 2010 to help patients suffering from depression, anxiety and insomnia during their cancer diagnosis and treatment. Our clinic is the first psycho-oncology clinic that is integrated in Cancer Center in Korea. We are teamed with the faculty of the Departments of Psychiatry and Oncology as well as the nurses, social workers and cancer training staff for comprehensive treatment. Doctors and nurses specializing in the mental health of cancer patients assess treatment needs of each patient an offer a one-stop service that enables the patients to take the psychological examinations and receive respective treatment needed on the same day. Our clinic expects to be the leader in mental health care and the field of study of the human mind, having helped 2,098 cancer patients since opening, recently two hundred cancer patients per month.

Providing quality professional medical services and pursuing leading-edge clinical research, SMC's Department of Psychiatry will be there for your mental well-being and happiness in life.

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Patients' Rights and Responsibilities

Patients' Rights

1. Right to receive medical care

Patients have the right to receive proper care in a safe setting without discrimination nor should their right to care be violated regardless of their gender, age, religion, social status, nationality, language, race, or physical/mental/financial status. Medical teams shall not refuse to provide care without justifiable reason.

2. Right to be informed and to make an autonomous decision

Patients have the right to obtain full and complete information from their medical team, to ask questions, and to determine their agreement or refusal concerning: diagnosis, treatment (purpose, plans and methods), outcomes of care (including unanticipated outcomes), discharge plan, participation in medical research studies, organ transplantation/donation, etc. Within ethical boundaries, patients may discontinue or refuse treatment, request that the medical team explain and suggest alternative treatments, and reserve the right to make their own decisions.

3. Right to confidentiality

Patients' rights to confidentiality regarding their physical/health status and privacy will not be violated. Patients can expect that all medical records/reports and their personal privacy will be kept confidential unless the patient has given consent or disclosure is permitted by law. To ensure their privacy, patients may be informed that Individuals not directly involved in their care may not be present and that the number of guardians accompanying patients to consultation rooms may be limited.

4. Right to request consultation and mediation

In the event of a medical dispute, patients may request consultation and mediation from an internal or external agency (Korea Consumer Agency, Korea Medical Dispute Mediation and Arbitration Agency).

5. Right to have values and beliefs respected

Patients will not be discriminated against because of their culture, religious values, or beliefs, and their rights will not be violated.

6. Right to receive care in a safe setting

Patients have the right to receive hospital-provided care where the patient’s medical information is protected and patient safety can be assured. In addition, patients have the right to be protected from possible dangers that can occur in a hospital and to have stability of mind and body.

Patients' Responsibilities

1. Responsibility to trust and respect the medical team

Patients must accurately inform the medical team of their health condition and must trust and respect the medical team's treatment plan. Patients may be responsible for consequences that result from not following instructions.

2. Responsibility to not use dishonest methods for medical treatment

Patients must reveal their identity before receiving any medical care and must not use false or dishonest methods, such as seeking medical care under disguised ownership.

3. Responsibility to abide by all hospital regulations

Patients are expected to treat all hospital staff and other patients with courtesy and respect; to abide by all hospital rules; and to earnestly fulfill their financial obligation to the hospital. Also, patients and their family members are expected to participate in all safety regulations.