What is the branch of medicine that deals with the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental illness called?

The branch of medicine that deals specifically with the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental illness is psychiatry. This field focuses on understanding and addressing various mental health disorders, which can encompass a wide range of issues including depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. Psychiatrists are medical doctors who have specialized training in mental health, enabling them to prescribe medication and provide psychotherapy, making them uniquely qualified to treat complex mental health conditions.

In contrast, psychology primarily involves the study of behavior and mental processes from a more behavioral and cognitive perspective rather than a medical one. Psychologists may provide therapy but typically do not prescribe medication. Pediatrics focuses on the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents, addressing physical health rather than mental health. Neurology is concerned with disorders of the nervous system, including the brain, but it does not specifically encompass the broader field of mental illnesses, which are often treated within psychiatry.