Medical psychology or Medicopsychology is the application of psychological principles to the practice of medicine, sometimes using drugs for both physical and mental disorders.
A medical psychologist must obtain specific qualification in psychopharmacology to prescribe psychiatric medications and other pharmaceutical drugs. A trained medical psychologist or clinical psychopharmacologist with prescriptive authority is a mid-level provider who prescribes psychotropic medication such as antidepressants for mental health disorders. However, a medical psychologist does not automatically equate with a psychologist having authority to prescribe medication. In fact, most medical psychologists do not prescribe medication and do not have authority to do so. Medical psychologists apply psychological theories, scientific psychological findings, and techniques of psychotherapy, behavior modification, cognitive, interpersonal, family, and lifestyle therapy to improve the psychological and physical health of the patient. Psychologists with postdoctoral specialty training as medical psychologists are the practitioners with refined skills in clinical psychology, health psychology, behavioral medicine, psychopharmacology, and medical science. Highly qualified and postgraduate specialized doctors are trained for service in primary care centers, hospitals, residential care centers, and long-term care facilities and in multidisciplinary collaboration and team treatment.
Medical psychology specialty The field of medical psychology may include predoctoral training in the disciplines of health psychology, rehabilitation psychology, pediatric psychology, neuropsychology, and clinical psychopharmacology, as well as subspecialties in pain management, primary care psychology, and hospital-based (or medical school-based) psychology as the foundation psychological training to qualify for proceeding to required postdoctoral specialty training to qualify to become a diplomate/specialist in medical psychology. To be a specialist in medical psychology, a psychologist must hold board certification from the American Board of Medical Psychology (ABMP), which requires a doctorate degree in psychology, a license to practice psychology, a postdoctoral graduate degree or other acceptable postdoctoral didactic training, a residency in medical psychology, submission of a work product for examination, and a written and oral examination by the American Board of Medical Psychology. The American Board of Medical Psychology maintains a distinction between specialists and psychopharmacological psychologists or those interested in practicing one of the related psychological disciplines in primary care centers. The term "medical psychologist" is not an umbrella term, and many other specialties in psychology such as health psychology, embracing the biopsychosocial paradigm (Engel, 1977) of mental/physical health and extending that paradigm to clinical practice through research and the application of evidenced-based diagnostic and treatment procedures are akin to the specialty and are prepared to practice in integrated and primary care settings.
The Louisiana Academy of Medical Psychology (LAMP), currently one of the largest organization of psychologists with prescriptive authority in the world and the only organization representing practitioners of medical psychology in Louisiana as defined by Louisiana statute within any jurisdiction in the United States, no longer recognizes the Academy of Medical Psychology as an adequate certifying body for its practitioners, and its members have resigned from the Academy of Medical Psychology en masse. Similarly, virtually all members of LAMP have also resigned from the Louisiana Psychological Association (LPA) after many LPA members uncovered that the LAMP's prescriptive authority movement covertly came to an agreement with Louisiana's medical board to transfer the entire practice of psychology for psychologists with prescriptive authority to the medical board. Louisiana is the only state in which the practice of psychology, including psychological testing, psychotherapy, diagnosis, and treatment for some psychologists (i.e., medical psychologists) is regulated by a medical board.
Adopting the biopsychosocial paradigm, the field of medical psychology has recognized the Cartesian assumption that the body and mind are separate entities is inadequate, representing as it does an arbitrary dichotomy that works to the detriment of healthcare. The biopsychosocial approach reflects the concept that the psychology of an individual cannot be understood without reference to that individual's social environment. For the medical psychologist, the medical model of disease cannot in itself explain complex health concerns any more than a strict psychosocial (LeVine & Orabona Foster, 2010) explanation of mental and physical health can in itself be comprehensive.
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