May is Mental Health Awareness Month. For many people, a medication regimen is an important aspect of managing their mental health. Psychiatric pharmacists help patients identify medications that will work for them, provide guidance on proper use, and adjust medication plans as necessary to ensure optimal healthcare for people with mental health issues.
Dr. Farah Khorassani is a health sciences associate clinical professor in the UC Irvine School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences and a board-certified psychiatric pharmacist. She is currently evaluating potential prescribing disparities in patients with serious mental illness, in collaboration with other UCI faculty.
Before joining UCI, Dr. Khorassani was an associate clinical professor at St. John’s University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and a clinical pharmacist in psychiatry at Bellevue Hospital Center.
“I became interested in psychiatry at a young age when hearing about my mother’s work as a social worker in a psychiatric hospital,” Dr. Khorassani shared. “When pharmacy school came around, I found that the material clicked for me, and I enjoyed my APPE rotation at a state psychiatric hospital in Massachusetts. My decision to pursue a psychiatric practice residency was solidified during my PGY1 when I did a psych consult-liaison rotation and found myself reading extra every day to learn more about diagnostics and pharmacotherapy.”
These early experiences informed Dr. Khorassani’s approach to patient care.
“On my APPE rotation, I taught medication education groups to adolescent and adult patients. I thoroughly enjoyed designing activities to enrich their medication knowledge and enjoyed getting to know the patients,” she said.
Fostering relationships and effectively communicating with patients is essential to ensuring quality care. For student pharmacists who are interested in psychiatric pharmacy, developing communication skills is just as crucial as classroom learning and professional experience.
“Psychiatric pharmacists must have all the typical skills of any pharmacist, as well as some adaptability in how you communicate with patients,” Dr. Khorassani stated. “I am always working to emphasize the importance of adherence and how to make regimens as easy to follow as possible for patients.”
Psychiatric pharmacy is a rewarding field where pharmacists can make a significant impact in the lives of patients.
“There is a shortage of mental health care providers of many professions, and pharmacists are positioned to serve as care extenders. If you are interested in possibly pursuing this pathway, try to gain some early experience in this area on IPPEs/APPEs. Doing a PGY2 in Psychiatric Pharmacy Residency is the best way to pursue clinical opportunities,” said Dr. Khorassani. “If you are passionate about psychiatric pharmacy, it can be very fulfilling.”
