Community Psychiatry Training for Psychiatry Residents : A National Survey

Abstract

Objectives: There is a increasing need to recruit and retain more psychiatrists who can plan and implement organized programs to work with chronic mentally ill patients in community settings. The aim of study is to discover what training is currently in place to prepare psychiatrist for work in "community" or "public" settings. Methods: Survey questionnaires were mailed to 85 residency training directors and 10 leaders of community mental health in 2005. Response rate was 75%. Results: Academic seminar about community mental health were not administered to residents in 63% of training hospitals. Forty one out of 64 training hospitals had community mental health rotation programs. Community mental health center (50%) and day hospital (36%) were the most common type of programs. Few general hospital had affiliation with community mental health programs. The amount of time for clinical rotation varied from less than three months part time to 6 months fulltime, with most frequent form of one day per week for three month in second or third year of psychiatry residents. Conclusion: Further steps are needed to improve residency training curricula and to encourage well qualified psychiatrist to choose careers in community psychiatry.