Program Directors' Messages
Robert J. Olson, M.D., Program Director
Welcome to the UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences Psychiatry Residency Program website. We are very excited that you are considering our program for your residency training. The program was founded in 1980 and has graduated over 140 psychiatrists, the vast majority have chosen to practice in the region, making an important impact on the mental health shortages of rural America. Our faculty practice in multiple community locations including a large multi-specialty tertiary referral clinic/hospital system, free-standing private psychiatric hospital (both children and adult), the Fargo Veterans Administration Health Care System, Community Human Service Centers, North Dakota State Hospital, private clinics both large and small, university settings, and other community agencies. Rural outreach and telemedicine extends through 9 locations throughout the state. Integration into primary care includes co-location of our Internal Medicine, Family Medicine and Psychiatry Resident Clinics as well as a purposeful collaboration and consultation rotation with Family Medicine residency clinic, producing cross-pollination and joint learning. We offer substantial rural outreach (telemedicine and site outreach) over two years in continuity clinic as well as unique training in eating disorders and clozapine clinics. Our teaching is personal and in small groups, classes varying from six to twelve residents in a course. You and your attendings will get to know each other well as teachers, learners, and physicians caring for patients.
We seek motivated residents who want to actively participate in their learning and work together to strengthen the residency. Our program is close-knit, your learning adventure includes spending significant time with your fellow classmates, along with all of the residents in the program, especially during the didactic portions that include resident directed learning and wellness activities. Our faculty and staff, residents and graduates are strong advocates for our program.
As director of the residency program, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself to you. I have personally been involved in teaching our residents for the past 36 years; including teaching a variety of didactic courses and supervising clinical experiences which include outpatient resident clinics, ER psychiatry, inpatient electives and geriatric psychiatry consultation to nursing homes over those years. I was raised in western North Dakota, trained in psychiatry at Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, Oregon, before returning to Fargo. I continue to practice Geriatric Psychiatry while supervising residents during their geriatric psychiatry rotation doing nursing home consultation which is my specialty board certification. I am very proud of our residents and faculty, who combine to make our program a strong option for the applicant wishing a broad training experience with special emphasis in tele-medicine. Many of our residents have gone on to train with highly competitive fellowships including Child and Adolescent, Sleep and Forensics. A large number choose to stay and work in the North Dakota/Minnesota area after completing training, which is also very gratifying to me.
Lisa J. Schock, M.D., Associate Program Director
Welcome! I am a Fargo native who completed my undergraduate degree, medical degree, and psychiatry residency at the University of North Dakota. I enjoyed my experiences with UND so much that I now work for the school as the Associate Program Director for our residency and the Clerkship Director for medical students rotating in psychiatry. I supervise residents and students in the clinical setting, in addition to teaching didactic courses. My clinical practice is currently working as an inpatient psychiatrist, though I have worked in various outpatient settings. My goal is to facilitate a supportive residency program that graduates highly skilled and well-rounded psychiatrists.
Our aim is to graduate well-rounded psychiatrists with broad training experiences. Our graduating residents will be well-equipped to become board certified in Psychiatry and practice successfully, giving excellent patient care with confidence.
Hear more from our program directors below.
