Psychiatric Care

You and your CAPS counselor may decide that psychiatric consultation is an important part of your treatment.  Psychiatric assessment and treatment are available to students who are working with a CAPS counselor or who are referred by an IU Health Center medical provider. The first appointment with a psychiatrist is scheduled for a 45-50 minutes.  Subsequent appointments are usually 15-30 minutes long.

To be eligible for CAPS psychiatric services a student must be referred by a CAPS therapist, a Sexual Assault Crisis Service (SACS) counselor, or a Health Center medical provider. Students under the care of a Bloomington area therapist who practices outside the Health Center are not eligible for CAPS psychiatric services, unless they intend to shift all of their care to CAPS.

Prescription Refills

Prescription refills are written during follow-up visits. Students are responsible for determining whether their medication will last until their next visit. If a medication will run out before the next scheduled visit, students may call CAPS and a written prescription will be available at the front desk within 48 hours (Monday - Friday). In certain situations, a student may be asked to make an appointment. Requests for refills during vacations, holidays and breaks should be avoided.

Students must safeguard their medications, and lost or stolen prescriptions for controlled substances (e.g. sedatives, sleeping pills, stimulants) may not be replaced.

Questions for Psychiatrists

For questions about severe medication side effects and allergic reactions, the psychiatrist should be called immediately. General, non-emergency questions about medications and treatment should be asked during appointments. Questions that come to mind after an appointment should be written down and asked at the next visit.

Medical Records

With the student's permission medical records may be requested from previous treatment providers. When students leave CAPS, they may request that copies of their CAPS records be forwarded to their next provider.

Subsequent Care

When students leave IU for the summer or at the end of their studies, they should arrange follow-up care in an expeditious manner. CAPS psychiatrists will attempt to ease this transition by providing enough medication refills.

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