Pine Rest Neuromodulation Clinic

For individuals considering treatment beyond medication, Pine Rest Neuromodulation Clinic provides transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) without requiring a hospital stay on its Grand Rapids campus. Their licensed psychiatrists and nursing staff offer TMS for depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), including when medications have not helped or side effects make them intolerable. Before the TMS consultation, staff contact the patient’s insurer to determine coverage.

Planning and Receiving TMS

Patients begin with a referral from their outpatient psychiatrist or primary care doctor. A TMS psychiatrist reviews symptoms and treatment history, discusses options, and develops a plan with the patient. During the first visit, lasting about 1.5 hours, the psychiatrist determines magnetic coil placement. Patients typically attend 36 treatments over 5-9 weeks, Monday through Friday. Subsequent sessions last about 20 minutes, with a nurse present throughout. Patients remain awake without anesthesia and can drive afterward.

ECT for Mood and Related Disorders

Psychiatrists provide ECT for depression, bipolar depression and mania, catatonia, schizoaffective disorder, and dementia complicated by an underlying mood disorder. Patients may choose this option because ECT helped previously, medications have not helped, side effects limit medication use, or they require a rapid response. For each session, clinicians administer a short-acting anesthetic and muscle relaxer. Once the patient is asleep, they use a brief electrical stimulus to induce a seizure.