Want to know what it's like to work at U-center as a psychiatrist? Read the interview with our psychiatrist Eline Berghmans here.
Why do you work at U-center?
I have worked at several large and small institutions in Limburg and actually since the founding of U-center I have always wanted to work there. I am really a free bird and want to be able to be flexible. I also like to operate in different challenging and complex environments. So when the opportunity to freelance at U-center presented itself five months ago, I didn't hesitate for a moment.
Contrary to what many of my fellow psychiatrists think, the patient population and thus the work at U-center consists of complex issues. This complexity is sometimes very great, which also makes me really able to add something to the recovery of our patients. I do this together with colleagues on the multidisciplinary teams. I am really impressed with their knowledge and expertise, for example in the field of trauma treatment (EMDR), which is really unique!
Why did you become a psychiatrist?
My father was a psychologist and health ethicist. I went with him once as a small child to Den Dolder (forensic psychiatric clinic, for the laymen among us: that's where patients are treated for serious transgressive behavior, often also because of a criminal order), and that made a lasting impression. I actually knew in my second year of medicine, when I did an internship in child and adolescent psychiatry, that that was the direction I wanted to go. It is the complexity of the human mind that I find intriguing.
What does a workday at U-center look like?
During an average workday - well, average, of course there's always something that doesn't go the way you thought beforehand - my duties include intakes, indications and diagnostics. I also have consultations with my own patients, of course. As a psychiatrist at U-center, you are the spider in the web around the patient. So I work a lot with all the colleagues on the treatment teams.
At U-center, we treat people with multiple diagnoses and complex problems. Because clients stay in the clinic for several weeks, we really go into depth during treatment. Fortunately, for somatic intake and treatments, I can fall back on the fellow physicians at U-center. This allows me to focus entirely on the psychiatric side of the treatments and thus on the things I am good at.
What are the fun things and challenges at U-center?
I have found the colleagues to be incredibly committed and collegial. We work hard and we also have a good time together. In addition, there is also time to participate in (improvement) projects and there is plenty of room for deepening and co-decision making about changes in treatment lines, for example.
As a psychiatrist, I have a lot of autonomy and can contribute to our patients' recovery in my own way. I really feel at home at U-center.
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As a psychiatrist at U-center, you are the spider in the web around the patient. So I work a lot with all the colleagues on the treatment teams.
Eline Berghmans - Psychiatrist U-center