My pdoc was randomly assigned to me 5 years ago at the depression research center of a big hospital. He didnt do any t at the hospital but is a big fan of CBT, so he insisted I see a cbt therapist there. It was only 6 weeks but very helpful so I was glad for the push.

Wherr I live what pdocs can do in practice is mostly dictated by insurance compaies. Ive seen my insurance claim statements, and my pdoc is reimbursed much less for a $240, 40 minute appointment than for a 20 minute, $165 appointment. But they will cover a separate therapy session with another provider so long as they are NOT an MD. So at his new private group practice he will see patients for 15-40 minutes, but not weekly. For that he referred me to a dbt t in his practice. I know there are some pdocs who are private, but I feel like that denies too many people access to care and kind of bothers me. If he didn't take insurance there is no way I could afford him. For a $15 co pay, I get to see both him and my t as much as I want (within reason of course). I see him for 20-40 minutes once a month and my t once a month. For a couple of years I saw her bi weekly. Him always monthly.

He is big in research and has published around 50 articles, mostly about the effectiveness of meds and depression scales. His research is focused on what really works for his patients and I think that is rare in this field. So with that I think he is a gem. He's also really cute as well, which doesn't hurt either :-) .