scholarly journals Impact of psychiatry training on attitude of medical students toward mental illness and psychiatry

2014 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 271 ◽  
Author(s):  
BS Chavan ◽  
Prannay Gulati ◽  
Subhash Das
BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S159-S159
Author(s):  
Suresh Thapaliya ◽  
Shizu Singh ◽  
Bharat Goit ◽  
Sandesh Sawant ◽  
Anoop Krishna Gupta

AimsThe study aims to compare the attitude of early clinical year medical students towards people with mental illness at the beginning and the end of their psychiatry teaching schedule. It hypothesizes that long exposure to psychiatry lectures can help to reduce the negative attitude.BackgroundHealth professionals are also known to harbour negative attitude towards people with mental illness. Reducing stigma among medical students is crucial to shape the attitude of future health professionals towards people with mental illness. However, the effect of Psychiatry training on the attitude of the medical students shows mixed results.MethodIt was a prospective longitudinal study conducted among fourth year medical students affiliated with a teaching hospital in Southern Nepal as an initiative to improve quality of Psychiatry training for medical students. The students who gave their consent for participation were assessed for their attitude at the beginning, after the first two introductory lectures and at the end of the Psychiatry lecture-based teaching schedule (36 two weekly lectures in 5 month period), using self-administered 16-item Mental Illness Clinician's Attitudes Scale (MICA-2) ‘medical students version’ questionnaire in English language. Permission was taken from the author of the study to use the scale. IRB approval was taken prior to the study.ResultA total of 95 (approx. 67%) students participated in the study. At the first follow-up i.e. second week, (n = 85), there was no significant difference in negative attitude as assessed by MICA score (p = 0.47). However, at six months follow-up (n = 82), the negative attitude significantly differed compared to the baseline (p < 0.001).ConclusionWhile brief lectures about mental illness can provide some knowledge about mental illness, long term exposure to psychiatry lectures can reduce attitude of medical students on people with mental illness. Hence, it is also crucial to incorporate academic contents that reduce negative attitude about people with mental illness.Financial declaration: The study was self-funded by the department of Psychiatry at National Medical College and Teaching Hospital, Parsa, Nepal.


1997 ◽  
Vol 12 (S2) ◽  
pp. 114s-114s
Author(s):  
L. Yllá Segura ◽  
A. González-Pinto Arrillaga

1997 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 259-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael F. Myers

Studies of utilisation of psychiatric services have shown that between 4 and 18% of medical students annually identify themselves as ‘impaired’ (Dickstein et al, 1990). An unknown number of students may be ill but do not seek help – they soldier on through classes and clinics not realising that their sleep disturbance, worry, vague pains, flagging spirits, failing grades or increasing use of alcohol represent symptoms of strain and possible psychiatric disorder. Some suspect or know that they are ill but the stigma of accepting mental illness or seeking professional help is so profound that they suffer silently.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 238212051988935 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrés Martin ◽  
Julie Chilton ◽  
Doron Gothelf ◽  
Doron Amsalem

Introduction: Depression and suicidal ideation are common among medical students, a group at higher risk for suicide completion than their age-normed peers. Medical students have health-seeking behaviors that are not commensurate with their mental health needs, a discrepancy likely related to stigma and to limited role-modeling provided by physicians. Methods: We surveyed second-year medical students using the Attitudes to Psychiatry (ATP-30) and Attitudes to Mental Illness (AMI) instruments. In addition, we asked questions about role-modeling and help-seeking attitudes at baseline. We then conducted a randomized trial of an intervention consisting of 2 components: (a) a panel of 2 physicians with personal histories of mental illness speaking about their diagnosis, treatment, and recovery to the students, immediately followed by (b) small-group facilitated discussions. We repeated the ATP-30 and AMI after the active/early group was exposed to the panel, but before the control/late group was similarly exposed. Results: Forty-three medical students participated (53% women). The majority of students (91%) agreed that knowing physicians further along in their careers who struggled with mental health issues, got treatment, and were now doing well would make them more likely to access care if they needed it. Students in the active group (n = 22) had more favorable attitudes on ATP-30 ( P = .01) and AMI ( P = .02) scores, as compared with the control group (n = 21). Conclusion: Medical students can benefit from the availability of, and exposure to physicians with self-disclosed histories of having overcome mental illnesses. Such exposures can favorably improve stigmatized views about psychiatry, or of patients or colleagues affected by psychopathology. This intervention has the potential to enhance medical students’ mental health and their health-seeking behaviors.


2015 ◽  
Vol 06 (04) ◽  
pp. 001-002
Author(s):  
Vijayalakshmi Poreddi ◽  
Rohini Thimmaiah ◽  
Suresh Bada Math

ABSTRACT Background: Globally, people with mental illness frequently encounter stigma, prejudice, and discrimination by public and health care professionals. Research related to medical students’f attitudes toward people with mental illness is limited from India. Aim: The aim was to assess and compare the attitudes toward people with mental illness among medical students’. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study design was carried out among medical students, who were exposed (n = 115) and not exposed (n = 61) to psychiatry training using self-reporting questionnaire. Results: Our findings showed improvement in students’ attitudes after exposure to psychiatry in benevolent (t = 2.510, P < 0.013) and stigmatization (t = 2.656, P < 0.009) domains. Further, gender, residence, and contact with mental illness were the factors that found to be influencing students’ attitudes toward mental illness. Conclusion: The findings of the present study suggest that psychiatric education proved to be effective in changing the attitudes of medical students toward mental illness to a certain extent. However, there is an urgent need to review the current curriculum to prepare undergraduate medical students to provide holistic care to the people with mental health problems.


BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S125-S125
Author(s):  
Debakanta Behera ◽  
Ji Yen Ku

AimsThird year Medical students from the International Medical University, Malaysia were assessed regarding their commonly held attitudes and beliefs for the mental illness in general as well as with respect to psychiatry as a faculty through a survey monkey based survey,BackgroundCommonly held perceptions and prejudices often can be overcame by education and early exposure to facts which also holds true with medical students and their attitude as well as expectations to psychiatry. Ever growing awareness regarding the Mental illness has helped but is unable to complete address the stigma and prejudices associated with it. Also Early exposure to psychiatry in medical education can provide a positive experience to medical students including germinating an interest in psychiatry as a career choice among the students.Method42 students of 3rd and 4th year medical school from International Medical University, Malaysia, some without any exposure to psychiatry, were participated in a survey created on a cloud based online survey link and responded to a questionnaire about the attitude and belief towards mental Illness as well as Psychiatry as a career choice. The results were analysed and data interpreted.ResultMost students (85%) though agreed that psychiatry is a rapidly expanding frontier of medicine sadly only 20% stated that it would be one of the top three career choice. Just under the 50% of the students stated that the psychiatric patients are more likely to harm others. About 95% felt that psychiatric consultations of patients with medical and surgical health problems would be helpful and 90% students shared that they would not feel embarrassed about someone from their family if diagnosed with mental illness.ConclusionPsychiatric exposure in medical education has been recognised as inadequate in general and often exposing medical students to psychiatry early helps improving the stigma and prejudices associated with mental illness. It will also give them sufficient exposure to assess the illness holistically keeping mental health in mind while treating physically ill people and also may inspire them to choose psychiatry as a career choice in a rapidly developing and conservative country such as Malaysia where mental health services are largely inadequate and is the second biggest health issue.


BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S8-S9
Author(s):  
George Blanchard ◽  
Louis Quail ◽  
Grace Yang ◽  
Katherine Terence ◽  
Amisha Kalra ◽  
...  

AimsWe sought to develop a teaching pilot to help year 2 medical students meet the following learning outcomes: Develop a better understanding of patient and carer experiences of mental illness; Recognise and challenge unhelpful attitudes towards people with mental illness; Promote a broader understanding of cultural issues surrounding mental illness, including stigma and discrimination.Method337 medical students were invited to attend a lecture by author LQ, a documentary photographer who presented a narrative of his brother Justin's lived experience of schizophrenia (louisquail.com/big-brother-introduction). 197 students attended the session, which was recorded and made available online. Students were invited to enter a competition to win a signed copy of LQ's book, ‘Big Brother’ and asked to submit either a 500-word written reflective piece, or a creative work accompanied by a 200-word statement. 13 submissions were received, including paintings, drawings, collage, photography, and poetry, all of which were blind rated by authors SR and GB, based on originality and quality of reflection. Of the six shortlisted, three winning entries were chosen by author LQ.ResultAll reflections moved away from a technical understanding of schizophrenia, towards person-centred interpretations, with dominant themes of ‘stigma’, ‘disempowerment’, ‘understanding people as individuals’, ‘subjective experience of mental illness’, ‘inclusion’ and ‘healing power of nature’.The three prize winners (authors GY, AK and KT) used different mediums: GY painted an osprey over a chaotic collage of disordered and stigmatizing words (the osprey representing empowerment and the “reservoir for wellbeing in nature”); AK's sonnet began as an ode to the chaos of Justin's experience, but the concluding lines reframed this struggle, conveying feelings of hope and beauty; and KT's self-portrait, produced with a slow shutter-speed photograph, powerfully conveyed a sense of disorientation and disturbance. She reflected on how the stigma of mental illness affects self-perception. The talk was well-attended, and reflections were of high quality. A limitation of this pilot was that only a small proportion of students completed the reflective assignment.ConclusionInnovative teaching strategies are needed to address negative attitudes towards mental illness and psychiatry, which are prevalent amongst the medical profession. This pilot provides a model for combining carer-led, reflective, and creative elements in undergraduate psychiatry teaching, with the aim of challenging stigma. This model will be evaluated in a further study involving fifth year medical students, which will use a validated scale to measure change in students’ attitudes towards mental illness and psychiatry.


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