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Primary Care Psychiatry is a program that allows children who are experiencing emotional or behavioral health concerns to receive basic psychiatric care within their medical home. You may be referred to one of our providers if you are a patient at Potomac Pediatrics. People often mistake the difference between a psychiatrist and a psychologist or a therapist. Psychiatrists are medical practitioners specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness, particularly with regards to medication management. Psychologists or therapists receive different post-graduate degrees and are responsible for doing psychotherapy to manage emotional or behavioral problems. Dr. Lauren Zohler, DO, is a board-certified child and adolescent psychiatrist, who can evaluate your child and initiate a treatment plan. At this time, Dr. Zohler is not offering therapy services. Ideally, once your child is stabilized, ongoing care will be provided by your doctor at Potomac Pediatrics. If your child requires more long-term psychiatric care or is prescribed medications that would necessitate more long-term follow-up (see a list of medications below), then your child may be referred to an outside psychiatrist for continued management. Candidates for this service include:
To be considered for our program you must complete an intake form with pertinent information, such as prior psychiatric treatment, previous medication trials, and a list of current concerns that you and your child wish to be addressed. This program is exclusive to existing patients that have an established medical history with Potomac Pediatrics. Non- patients who are already established with a pediatric practice outside of Potomac Pediatrics, looking to switch to Potomac Pediatrics to gain access to this service will not be accepted by nor referred to Dr. Zohler. Once the intake form is completed, Dr. Lauren Zohler our psychiatrist, will evaluate your child, confirm the diagnosis, if one exists, and develop a treatment plan. The next steps will either be follow up visits with her or transfer back to your pediatrician with treatment plan recommendations. Patients referred to the psychiatrist who has significant ongoing diagnostic or therapeutic challenges will be ineligible for our services and will be referred to an outside psychiatrist or other mental health providers. Our goal is to stabilize your child on the new treatment regimen and transfer them back to their pediatrician who will oversee their continued treatment. Private patient discussions are confidential and protected under the law, they will not be shared with the parent unless Dr. Zohler is concerned for the patient’s safety. The following medications are not appropriate for our Primary Care Psychiatry program:
| Mood Stabilizers: | Antipsychotics: | Benzodiazepines: |
|---|---|---|
| Lithium | Risperidone | Xanax |
| Depakote | Abilify | Ativan |
| Lamotrigine | Seroquel | Klonopin |
| Latuda | Valium | |
| Zyprexa | ||
| Geodon | ||
| Haldol | ||
| Rexulti |
Potomac Pediatrics will always be fully focused on helping your child and you to overcome any healthcare hurdle, with innovative, comprehensive and compassionate care.
