Mission Statement
The triple board program at University of Utah Health aims to train clinicians who are skilled pediatricians and psychiatrists for all ages; striving to take care of the whole patient from a biopsychosocial perspective, and being strong advocates for our patients and families. We emphasize the integration of primary care and mental healthcare, in an effort to provider earlier access to treatments, and serve as a bridge to educate primary care providers. We strive to provide low cost, high quality healthcare that is patient-centered and evidence based. Our graduates are equipped to provide pediatric and psychiatric care in urban or rural settings, using in-person or telemedicine platforms, with skill in treating the spectrum of disease acuity. Our program supports each other with our motto “Never Worry Alone.”
Academic Focus
The Triple Board program at Utah is striving to produce leaders in the field of mental health integration (MHI). Since 2016, residents have been embedded in collaborative care clinics within primary care and subspecialty care throughout their five years of training, with the goal of becoming experts in cross-disciplinary care and communication for children and adults with mental illness in the community. Several recent program graduates have become Utah community leaders in MHI practice in the pediatrics, internal medicine, family medicine, and OB/GYN outpatient world. We are also working to expand access to MHI services within local underserved communities, including in the South Main Clinic pediatrics resident clinic.
We enjoy a history of excellent clinical care and research, with the future only looking brighter given the commitment of $150 million to the University of Utah by the Huntsman family to establish the Huntsman Mental Health Institute. The focus of these funds will be to provide financial support to the University of Utah Department of Psychiatry in becoming a national leader in research, clinical care, and community outreach. At present, the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry includes over 40 full-time faculty members which allows residents diverse learning, research and mentorship opportunities.
Wellness
Our residents participate in social activities in all three programs, informally as well as through dedicated wellness events. The triple board program has a fall overnight retreat and a spring team-building retreat, and monthly resident meetings. There are also retreats on pediatrics and psychiatry. Lots of retreating!!
There is a free gym to use at the University of Utah Neuropsychiatric Institute.
Residents all have access to free, confidential psychotherapy and other services through the GME Wellness program. Additionally, the program administration in all three programs have open door policies.
Mentoring
Each resident is assigned an advisor when they start the program and another when they transition to psychiatry in their PGY 2 year. They pick a formal mentor by the end of their second year of residency.