Psychiatry is the branch of medicine focused on the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mental, emotional and behavioural disorders. Just like any other medical speciality, Psychiatrists are doctors first and specialists second. Psychiatry thus is just a medical career and shares with other medical disciplines the authority to prescribe drugs and recommended treatments. Psychiatrists are skilled doctors who help people cope with their mental health problems and ensuring they make progress towards a solution after other help has failed. People who have mental health problems are often unhappy, disturbed, dissatisfied ad sometimes considered to be a burden. They also have feelings which suggest they are different from the rest of the world and find it difficult to trust many people around them. The Psychiatrist is one person who can make a difference and can give hope at the most difficult of times. Psychiatrists can make a huge contribution in treating a person and also improving the quality of life of that person, reducing the stress and improving the social condition of the person.
On the other hand, Psychology is the science of human and animal behaviour; it includes the application of this science to human problems. As the definition suggests it is often used to solve real-life problems. Just like a physician or engineer develops his/her skills and uses scientific knowledge and solves problems, the psychologists have been trained, the artistry, or knack, of applying psychology in clinical practice.
It is the balance of both Psychiatry and Psychology, along with the help of Psychiatrists and Psychologists that one effectively treats a mental health problem. As it stands ours is a country with a lack of medical facilities and a lot of stigma towards mental health illness. It is considered a big taboo to discuss it. It is very important for us to eliminate this issue in our country and also start awareness campaigns about mental health illnesses. It is the need of the hour that all resources are utilised and an all-out attack is launched to fight the mental health problems so as to improve the quality of life of people and reduce the burden on our society.