P02-170 - Opinions of Italian Residents in Psychiatry on Their Training Course

Abstract

Objectives

To assess trainees’ opinions on the quality of provided educational programs, as recently pointed out in several European countries.

Methods

The opinions of 198 Italian trainees in psychiatry on their training and their future career were assessed by means of the Questionnaire on Training in Psychiatry (QTP).

Results

Recruited trainees were predominantly female (68%), with a mean age of 30.0 (± 3.0) years. Thirty-seven percent of them chose psychiatry because “it has always been a dream”, 20% by chance and 17% because they felt “keen on it”. Seventy-seven percent of residents interviewed would make the same choice again if they could turn back time.

Seventy percent of the respondents were “globally satisfied” with their training, especially in clinical psychiatry, psychopathology and psychopharmacology. Residents reported that training in psychotherapy, in psychiatric rehabilitation and in forensic psychiatry were the most neglected areas in their specialization course. Only 9% of them participated in exchange programs, finding them useful for their professional life and experience.

Conclusions

These results show that Italian psychiatric trainees are globally satisfied with the quality of their training. However, they feel that the training course in some neglected areas, such as psychotherapy, rehabilitation and forensic psychiatry, should be improved, and that exchange programs in other countries should be promoted.