Pragnya Dara

My interest in psychiatry stems from my desire to understand people's beliefs and how that affects other aspects of their lives. For example, a person in the corporate field burning out after years of overworking and then realising he is now depressed; or exploring addiction and the various life courses that lead people into this. Working in a field where I have the opportunity to help patients like this everyday is what has led me to decide that Psychiatry is the specialty for me. Therefore, I aim to explore this further by chairing the Psychiatry subcommittee this year. 

The field of Psychiatry is so vast, yet at medical school we are exposed to very little information about all the possibilities within Psychiatry. Therefore, I hope to organise workshops, talks and interactive debates exploring areas such as addiction therapy, working with prisoners and other sub specialities within Psychiatry such as working with children with special needs. Having attended the amazing Psychiatry conference this year I aim to draw inspiration from that and hold another conference in the coming year that will explore more of the lesser known fields within Psychiatry and also provide students with knowledge regarding routes into Psychiatry.