AMARILLO, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) – Texas Tech Physicians Psychiatry, Northwest Texas Healthcare System Behavioral Health and Texas Panhandle Centers will host the annual Hugh A. Pennal Lecture Series on Friday at Hodgetown Stadium, with a focus on providing mental health care in a primary care setting.

According to organizers, the 2023 lecture will begin at 12:30 p.m. at Hodgetown Stadium with registration and lunch, with panel discussions and networking scheduled until 4 p.m. The lecture will feature a panel of medical experts in psychiatry, family medicine, obstetrics and gynecology and pediatrics, who will discuss their approaches to mental health in their care settings.

This lecture series comes, said organizers, due to the need for psychiatric services in the Texas Panhandle region that cannot be served by psychiatrists only. Because of that, the panel discussion will aim to inform community providers about other ways to access primary psychiatric treatment for patients. Attendees will be advised on how to recognize which mental illnesses need pharmacological intervention and which need behavioral intervention, as well as become more familiar with non-traditional psychiatric resources like CPAN and PeriPAN.

Organizers detailed that panel speakers will include:

• Amy Stark, M.D., Texas Tech Physicians Psychiatry
• Rachel Anderson, M.D., Texas Tech Physicians Pediatrics
• Teresa Baker, M.D., Texas Tech Physicians Obstetrics and Gynecology
• Shyla Arismendez, M.D., Northwest Physicians Group-Primary Care

Those interested in registering for the free event can do so here.