Psychiatry deals with prevention, assessment, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of mental illness. A psychiatrist diagnoses and treats those with mental and emotional disorders such as schizophrenia, addictions, mood and anxiety disorders, substance-abuse disorders, and sexual and adjustment disorders. After assessment, the psychiatrist can diagnose, treat and manage an illness or problem by medication or various forms of psychotherapy. A psychiatrist is qualified to order diagnostic laboratory tests and to prescribe medications, evaluate and treat psychologic and interpersonal problems, and to intervene with families who are coping with stress, crises and other problems.

Physicians in this specialty treat patients suffering from numerous diseases and illnesses, but some of the most common are attention deficit hyperactive, learning disabilities, co-dependency, attention deficit disorder, clinical depression, eating disorders, anxiety disorders, phobias, mania, schizophrenia, claustrophobia, paranoia, agoraphobia, psychosis, social anxiety disorder, hallucination, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, and panic attacks.

Once properly diagnosed, practitioners can perform numerous procedures on patients including marital therapy, marital counseling, adolescent counseling, child counseling, stress management, hypnosis, family therapy, shock treatment, relaxation therapy, electroconvulsive therapy, and psychiatric therapy.

To diagnose patients with possible illnesses and diseases, specialists will often perform one of many tests including psychiatric evaluation, intelligence tests, personality tests, add/adhd tests, depression tests, stress tests, abuse tests, psychiatric exam, sexual health tests, and addictions tests.

Doctor density varies by specialty and location. Georgia has 784 practicing psychiatrists. Broken out by city, psychiatry doctor density in Adairsville is 1, in Adel is 1, in Albany is 8, in Alpharetta is 21, in Americus is 6, in Athens is 12, in Atlanta is 256, in Austell is 4, in Barnesville is 1, in Baxley is 1, in Brunswick is 9, in Buford is 2, in Calhoun is 2, in Canton is 4, in Carrollton is 8, in Cartersville is 3, in Clayton is 1, in Conyers is 2, in Cumming is 1, in Cuthbert is 3, in Dahlonega is 1, in Dalton is 11, in Decatur is 62, in Douglas is 4, in Douglasville is 4, in Dublin is 14, in Duluth is 10, in East Point is 4, in Eatonton is 1, in Fayetteville is 2, in Flowery Branch is 10, in Fort Benning is 3, in Fort Gaines is 2, in Fort Gordon is 3, in Fort Oglethorpe is 3, in Fort Stewart is 2, in Gainesville is 11, in Grayson is 1, in Greensboro is 3, in Greenville is 2, in Griffin is 4, in Hamilton is 1, in Hinesville is 1, in Hiram is 1, in Jackson is 1, in Jasper is 1, in Jefferson is 1, in Jonesboro is 6, in Kennesaw is 2, in La Fayette is 1, in Lagrange is 1, in Lawrenceville is 18, in Lilburn is 2, in Lithonia is 2, in Macon is 18, in Marietta is 24, in Mcdonough is 1, in Midville is 1, in Milledgeville is 17, in Moultrie is 3, in Nahunta is 1, in Newnan is 4, in Norcross is 6, in Oakwood is 1, in Peachtree City is 4, in Powder Springs is 1, in Richland is 2, in Riverdale is 5, in Rockmart is 1, in Rome is 17, in Rossville is 1, in Roswell is 14, in Saint Marys is 2, in Saint Simons Island is 8, in Sandersville is 1, in Savannah is 25, in Scottdale is 1, in Smyrna is 19, in Snellville is 10, in Statesboro is 4, in Stmarys is 1, in Stockbridge is 10, in Stone Mountain is 4, in Summerville is 1, in Suwanee is 2, in Swainsboro is 3, in Talking Rock is 1, in Thomasville is 18, in Thomson is 1, in Tifton is 3, in Toccoa is 1, in Tucker is 6, in Tyrone is 1, in Valdosta is 12, in Vidalia is 1, in Villa Rica is 3, in Warner Robins is 11, in Waycross is 2, in Waynesboro is 1, and in Woodstock is 1.

Georgia is rich in history, from its statehood in 1788, to its tobacco plantations, to its civil rights memorials. Atlanta is its vibrant capital city, and it offers a myriad of music, arts, sports and nightlife. While in Atlanta, visit the world’s largest aquarium, the Woodruff Arts Center, or the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Ride the Old Town Trolley in Savannah, and listen to some live jazz and blues at one of Savannah’s many festivals. Georgia’s mountain parks offer hiking, biking, climbing, and other outdoor activities. On Georgia’s coastline, you can go boating, deep sea fishing or kayaking in the Atlantic. The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge draws many visitors yearly.

According to 2005 Census estimates, Georgia has a population of 9,072,576. Of this population, 2,319,806 are under the age of 18 and 865,997 are at or above the age of 65.