Psychotherapy training in the Northwest – a survey

Psychotherapy requirements as recommended by the College: awareness and achievement by senior house officers

Aims and Method

We questioned 141 senior house officers (SHOs) across three training schemes in order to ascertain the awareness and achievement of psychotherapy requirements as recommended by the College. A structured questionnaire was used and administered either in person or over the telephone to all SHOs. Of all the trainees surveyed, 32 were eligible for MRCPsych part II.

Results

Only 9% of the SHOs eligible for MRCPsych part II were able to meet the requirements. Less than a third of all trainees were aware of the College guidelines.

Clinical Implications

Trainees face a number of practical problems in meeting the College guidelines. Psychotherapy training for basic specialist trainees is in need of urgent review and steps need to be taken to ensure that SHOs are gaining basic psychotherapeutic skills.

A national survey of Canadian psychiatry residents' perceptions of psychotherapy training

OBJECTIVE

To explore Canadian psychiatry residents' perceptions of their psychotherapy training and identify factors that may influence decisions to practise psychotherapy after graduation.

METHOD

We surveyed psychiatry residents at all training sites across Canada, using a self-report questionnaire.

RESULTS

The response rate was 63%. Of the respondents, 68% indicated that the prospect of learning and practising psychotherapy was a factor in their decisions to become psychiatrists, and 87% considered their ability to practise psychotherapy to be important to their identities as psychiatrists. The majority of residents (71%) were generally satisfied with their psychotherapy training. Among the graduating class of residents, 84% anticipate practising psychotherapy in some capacity. Satisfaction with their overall training experience and supervision and feeling competent to perform psychotherapy were significantly associated with their decisions to practise psychotherapy after graduation.

CONCLUSIONS

Most psychiatry residents currently enrolled in postgraduate training programs across Canada view psychotherapy as having an important role in the way they anticipate practising psychiatry.