Thielen Student Health Center’s sole psychiatrist was recently named a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (APA).

Dr. Carver Nebbe, psychiatrist and chief of medical staff at the Health Center, was nominated by the Iowa Psychiatric Society for the award. Nebbe joined the Health Center in 2007 and serves as the only psychiatrist on campus. 

Each year, the Iowa Psychiatric Society nominates members who it believes meet the APA’s requirements for making contributions in areas such as administration, teaching, community involvement, scholarship and volunteer work. To be considered, nominees must also have been general members of the APA for at least eight years and have made significant contributions in their field.

“I honestly don’t think of myself as a distinguished fellow,” Nebbe said. “I’m kind of excited to have gotten it because I’ve never really seen myself in the light of people who have gotten [this award]. It was really a change in self-perception.”

After being nominated by the Iowa Psychiatric Society, Nebbe had to fill out an application to be considered. Nebbe said the application process was extensive and included submitting seven letters of recommendation.

“The fellowship represents a testament to the quality of care that he provides to his patients,” said Erin Baldwin, director of the Thielen Health Center. “He’s always willing to go the extra mile and is very intelligent in all areas.”

Baldwin said that despite only having worked at the Health Center for about a month, she was not surprised when she found out that Nebbe was awarded. 

Nebbe believes the staff at the Health Center work very hard to provide good health care for students and hopes this award can prove that to students. 

“I think often times students have this tendency to dismiss the Health Center as second-rate medicine, where people aren’t the most serious about providing health care,” Nebbe said. “First of all, the faculty and staff know that it’s not that way. I want students to know that it’s not that way. I think from that perspective, the award can potentially be really good for the Health Center.”

The Health Center is currently working to expand its mental health suite, which will be located on the second floor. It is also working on hiring another psychiatrist to work alongside Nebbe.

“To be honest, this is what affects students more than anything,” Nebbe said. “When you get a cold, it’s extremely inconvenient. When you sprain your ankle, it’s extremely inconvenient. When you’re suffering from mental health issues, it really puts you at risk. We do need more of these services. They are already spilling over into the primary care, which is already overburdened.”

Cosette Scallon, associate director of clinical services at the Health Center, said changes to the mental health suite is just a small portion of the work being done. 

“The fact that there’s so few psychiatrists in Ames, anyways, is really important,” Scallon said. “We’re really lucky that Iowa State has a psychiatrist because there’s not many around. The fact that he got [this award] shows that we’re trying to give quality care. We’re really proud of him for getting that honor.” 

Nebbe has also been invited to be publicly awarded at the Convocation of Distinguished Fellows in Atlanta, Ga., in May.

“I work really hard and I think we all work really hard here to provide good care without rushing people through,” Nebbe said. “We really do want to be a place where people can come and get good health care while also learning about being good health care consumers.”