Perceived Quality of the Postgraduate Psychiatric Training in a Romanian Sample

Abstract

Introduction The quality and opportunities of the postgraduate training are factors that influence the residents’ future career. Objectives To assess the perceived quality of the Romanian psychiatric training system. Aims To identify factors that may be improved in the psychiatric training. Methods Residents in psychiatry were asked to fulfill an anonymous questionnaire regarding satisfaction with their training and preferences for future practice. The questionnaire contained open and closed-ended questions about clinical and research training: the quality of lectures, case presentations, rotations between attending physicians, hospital practice, and access to conferences, to PhD enrollment, to randomized controlled trials (RCTs), and to psychotherapy training. Results The study included 45 residents in psychiatry from different years of training at Timisoara Neuroscience Department. 71.11% of the residents considered psychiatric emergencies to be the most useful training. All residents are satisfied with case presentations. Over 70% are satisfied and very satisfied with the lectures held by coordinators and supervision of the attending doctors. Still, the level of satisfaction with lectures and supervision decreases with the increasing of the years of training. More than 80% of residents are satisfied with participation to conferences, but very few have access to PhD, RCTs, or psychotherapy training. Most residents display a medium level of satisfaction with hospital activity. 40% prefer a mix of academic and medical career. Conclusions Although residents rate their overall training as satisfying, they have little access to research and psychotherapy opportunities. The study doesn’t intend to generalize the results for all the country.