Training
Dr. Fenton has been practicing medicine for over 30 years, specializing in adult and child psychiatry, psychopharmacology, and parent guidance. She received her medical and residency training at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and completed her Fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts, a Harvard Medical School affiliate. Dr. Fenton was a staff psychiatrist at Westwood Lodge Psychiatric Hospital for 10 years before engaging in full time outpatient practice.
Practice Philosophy
From the beginning of medicine, physicians have learned that 99% of diagnosis is made by taking a good patient history which requires the ability to listen to their patients. Modern insurance pressures have restricted primary care physicians to a brief 15 minutes per office visit. The result is increased reliance on invasive tests and procedures in place of taking a good patient history. This has caused significant problems for patients due to the financial and logistical burden of travel time for appointments, co-pays, and missed days at work, as well as the heightened anxiety they experience waiting for the diagnosis and treatment recommendations.
From a medical perspective, the patient is evaluated almost exclusively on the basis of chemistry and imagery instead of the patient's symptoms, medical and family history. When all is said and done, patients are often told that their test results are within normal parameters and there is nothing more to be done!
Dr. Fenton still takes the time to listen and ask the right questions. Based on her patients' answers, she is able to distill a diagnosis without over reliance on specialist referrals or costly and invasive tests and procedures. She listens with a medically trained ear, a mental textbook of medicine, anatomy, physiology, psychiatry, neurology, endocrinology, pharmacology, an understanding of the emotional, social, and psychological implications involved in her patients' condition, and most important, over thirty years of patient experience
Her evaluation and treatment derive from a thoughtful consideration of the patient's history, as well as such important variables as age and gender, sleep, nutrition, activity, family and work environment, hormonal and seasonal composition and fluctuations, and existing medical conditions.
Dr. Fenton sees her specialty as part of the broader practice of medicine as it relates to total patient care. Her medical knowledge, training, personal interactions and experience are integral and active components of her treatment.
Treatment Methods
Dr. Fenton treats the spectrum of psychiatric and medical conditions with a focus on early diagnosis, patient education, and prevention of functional limitations. ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, anxiety disorders, depression, post-partum depression, and OCD are some of her many areas of expertise.
She employs a variety of treatment methods including psychotherapy, family therapy, and cognitive behavioral techniques depending on the needs of her patients.
She often sees more than one family member in individual treatment, and is happy to meet with those family members collaborative treaters her patients invite to participate.
She has earned an outstanding reputation as a diagnostician and consultant among patients and referring physicians.
Memberships, Associations, and Publications
Dr. Fenton is a member of the American Psychiatric Society, the Massachusetts Medical Association, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
She has lectured and contributed to publications on bipolar disorder, grief, and the role of stigma in psychiatric diagnosis and treatment. Her children's book Tikun Olam, Fixing the World, which she authored and illustrated, is widely used to help children cope with grief and loss.
