Psychothera

py: Do We
Have Enough
People
Invested?
Analyzing Efficiency in the

Name: Andrew Tsai

School: Centennial High School
Mentor: Dr. Meng Choo
Mentor Affiliation: Howard County
General Hospital
(Pediatric Emergency)

Objective

To create and present a thirty

minute info session at the
Student Learning Conference at
APL to raise awareness on the
need for psychotherapists

Procedure

Observe a day-to-day basis at my internship at Howard

County General Hospital
Shadow my mentor and have a feel for procedures and
medical documentation
Assist in operations and patient interaction
Study interesting trends in the Pediatric Emergency
Department
Select a focalized area of medicine to improve
Investigate case studies of Psych patients through
documentation
Write detailed notes of specific patients

 Research effective treatments

Claim that a conjunction of psychotherapy and
pharmacotherapy is best for treatment
Distinguish the pros and cons of Emergency
Medicine on caring for psych patients
Determine a beneficial solution to facilitating
and easing psych patient care
Create a presentation to display for students
and adults at the student learning conference

 Unite the trends with additional hospital

shortcomings including substance abuse and
lack of primary care
Present the project at the Student Learning
Conference at the Applied Physics Lab
Answer pertinent questions for individuals at
the SLC
Receive and utilize feedback to talk with
doctors

Learning Outcomes

Understand the societys outlook on medication for

psychologically disabled patients
Receive more information about effective treatments for
common-afflicting mental disorders
Garner information from various research articles
Gain the experience of presenting to a large audience
Listen to other areas of concern in the community that need
attention and connect aspects that could benefit both causes
Raise awareness to the community on the number of psych
patients in Howard County and throughout the nation
Spread knowledge of the need for psychotherapists

 Work on sharing ideas to doctors at Howard County

General Hospital
Share findings to peers
Acquire advanced skills in creating online portfolios and
Powerpoints through class
Develop stronger Synthesis writing abilities
Improve real-world interaction by conversing with
patients and their parents, as well as other doctors,
residents, and nurses
Experience the first-hand life of a medical doctor and the
work it entails

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my mentor, Dr. Choo, a Pediatric
Emergency Physician at Howard County General Hospital, for
taking me under his wing and guiding me this year not only in
terms of psych patients but also for other medical practices
such as internal issues needing scans to the causes of febrile
seizures to suturing and splinting. I would also like to thank my
family and Mrs. Bagley for seeking this opportunity and my
dad and mom for helping educate me on medical knowledge
even when not at my internship. Furthermore, I would like to
thank all the doctors and staff at the hospital that made me
feel welcome and a part of the community, as well as those
who helped to mentor me on their own time.

Abstract

The following research is a result of interest for the well-being of Howard

County patients. At my internship, I see an assortment of cases from broken
bones to brain tumors. A recurring, alarming situation I notice though, are an
increasing number of psych patients entering the hospital. My project was
spurred from the large number of psychological patients and the seemingly
extended period of time that they spent, for it is difficult for the Emergency
Room to focus on specialized care, during their hospital visits. This project
delves into the question of whether there is an excessive amount of psych
patients being admitted to the Hospital due to a lack of specialized
psychotherapists in the area. With the help of my mentor, we studied several
articles on the effectiveness of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy and
analyzed patient case studies. To spread awareness and support for the cause
of an increase in psychological therapists, we created a presentation to express
the concern of Emergency Department psychological care. This presentation
was paired with other Emergency Medicine concerns including problems of
substance abuse and the lack of primary patient care that also lead to
inefficiencies in the Emergency Room. I acted as a liaison in presenting this
information to students and adults at the Student Learning Conference at the
Applied Physics Lab. Through this, we aim to illuminate the underlying issue of
mental instability among suburban youth and the steps that must be taken to
recover mentally unstable patients and assist the cause.