Growing up in the Bay Area, Dr. Raymond Young developed an interest in both psychiatry and medicine early on. "As a young child I was a shy person," he explains, "so I wanted to learn why was I shy." His interest in medicine was kindled by his father, who was an OB/GYN, and his mother, who had lupus, a chronic disease that she had to proactively manage.

Today Young is Division Chief for Psychosomatic Medicine in Emory Healthcare's Department of Psychiatry. He describes psychosomatic medicine as "the interplay between medicine and psychiatric illness." The field involves looking at patients who are medically ill and addressing their psychiatric needs. It's something that is becoming more integrated Emory Healthcare's care model, he says. "I think Emory's is in the process of doing that, and we have a lot of settings that we're doing that. That's what the Brain Health Center is meant to be."

One of the patient populations Young serves is seniors. Emory has a day hospitalization program called "Transitions," a five-day-a-week program focused on assisting seniors with transitions in life — loss of spouse, loss of independence, etc. This type of program requires Young's expertise, as there are patients with both medical issues and emotional issues. The program includes group therapy, individual therapy, and medication management.

As much as Young enjoys working with patients, he also enjoys teaching Emory medical students. "I like being involved with our young learners. They offer new perspectives, allow us to think about our patients differently."  He himself attended the Medical College of Ohio in Toledo. He completed his residency at Rush Presbyterian in Chicago.