Attitude of future doctors toward psychiatry: A cross-sectional study at a medical college in Eastern India

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Psychiatry is one of the emerging branches in medicine which has made rapid strides of late. However, the attitude of students toward psychiatry has not been favorable and it is one of the less popular subjects in the medical curriculum. In the present study, we explore the attitudes toward psychiatry (ATP) among the final-year students of a medical college of eastern India. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this cross-sectional descriptive study, 147 final-year students were approached, of which 104 students consented for the study. They were assessed regarding their ATP as a subject, psychiatric patients, and illness and the treatment under the respective domains of ATP-30 scale. The analysis involved descriptive analysis of the data. RESULTS: A neutral to negative attitude was observed toward psychiatry as a subject in the students. The mean ATP score among the female students was slightly higher than the male students. The most neutral responses were received in the items such as “psychiatric illness deserves at least as much attention as physical illness,” “psychiatric hospitals have a specific contribution to make,” and “if we listen to them, psychiatric patients are just as human as other people.” CONCLUSION: The finding in our study is an indication of lacunae in the present undergraduate curricula and training in relation to psychiatry as subject of medical science. There is a need to reevaluate this aspect of undergraduate psychiatry teaching and look for potential solutions.