Training directors’ and registrars’ views on research training in Australasian psychiatry

✍ Scribed by Leah Andrews; John Coverdale; Sarah Turbott

• Publisher: Informa plc
• Year: 2001
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 76 KB
• Volume: 9
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1039-8562
• DOI: 10.1046/j.1440-1665.2001.00307.x

✦ Synopsis

Objective: To determine to what extent research skills are taught and how they are taught to psychiatrists-in-training across Australasia.

Method: Anonymous mail-out survey of training directors and trainee representatives on local training committees.

Results: The questionnaire was completed by 20 of 23 directors (response rate = 87%) who reported on 522 trainee psychiatrists. Formal seminars or lectures and journal clubs were the most commonly adopted methods of teaching (90% and 70% of programs respectively) while only two programs formally required trainees' participation in research. Epidemiologi-cal research methods, critical appraisal skills, ethical issues, and research design were the topics most commonly taught formally, and these were taught in 80% of programs or less. Only 33 (6.3%) trainees were involved in a research project that involved data collection.

Conclusions: Research skills were rather uniformly taught. The results are discussed in relation to identified areas for improvement.