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Junior doctors' training in the theory and the practice of electroconvulsive therapy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Richard Duffett  and
Paul Lelliott
Richard Duffett*
Affiliation:
College Research Unit, 11 Grosvenor Crescent, London SW1X 7EE
Paul Lelliott
Affiliation:
College Research Unit, 11 Grosvenor Crescent, London SW1X 7EE
*
∗Correspondence
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Abstract

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Recent advances in knowledge about effective administration of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has placed great emphasis on the importance of good training and supervision of those administering it. The American Psychiatric Associaton requires that doctors be specifically accredited before they are allowed to give ECT. In England and Wales training is much more informal and ECT is often given by junior doctors. Doctors rostered to administer ECT in Wales and in two areas of England were surveyed as part of the College's third audit of ECT. About two-thirds of respondents were at senior house officer level. The training in ECT appeared of variable quality and one-half had not been supervised by an experienced psychiatrist on the first occasion they administered ECT. Responses to exam-type questions revealed that 45% lacked knowledge about one or more basic issue related to effective administration of ECT.

Type
Trainees' Forum
Information
Psychiatric Bulletin , Volume 21 , Issue 9 , September 1997 , pp. 563 - 565
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © 1997 The Royal College of Psychiatrists

References

American Psychiatric Association (1990) The Practice of Electroconvulsive Therapy: Recommendations for Treatment Training and Privileging. Washington, DC: APA.Google Scholar
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Royal College of Psychiatrists (1995) The ECT Handbook: The Second Report of the Royal College of Psychiatrists' Special Committee on ECT. (Council Report CR39). London: Royal College of Psychiatrists.Google Scholar
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