Importance of psychiatry services for patients with limb loss

Psychiatrists Dr. Rosalie Steinberg and Dr. Matt Boyle of Sunnybrook’s Hurvitz Brain Sciences Program and St. John's Rehab, speak about the importance of psychiatry services for patients with limb loss on TheAmpuTO Show.

“There is a high degree of mental health challenges that can arise when people are in a rehabilitation setting,” explains Dr. Boyle. “In this setting individuals have had a major life stressor: an amputation, major burn or major stroke.”

“Many of themes we explore with our patients are around grief, loss, and how to cope with the change in their self image and how to re-integrate back into the community,” explains Dr. Steinberg.

The clinical care and research of the team highlights the importance of addressing mental health needs after major life stressors, and the uniqueness of the program at St. John’s Rehab that embeds psychiatrists as part of the team in treatment and care, to help make significant impacts on patient recovery.​