Academic psychiatry : the journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry
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Video games are used in medical practice during psycho-education in chronic disease management, physical therapy, rehabilitation following traumatic brain injury, and as an adjunct in pain management during medical procedures or cancer chemotherapy. In psychiatric practice, video games aid in social skills training of children with developmental delays and in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). This most popular children's toy may prove a useful tool in dynamic psychotherapy of youth. ⋯ During video game play, the therapist may observe thought processes, impulsivity, temperament, decision-making, and sharing, among other aspects of a child's clinical presentation. Several features inherent to video games require a thoughtful approach as resistance and transference in therapy may be elaborated differently in comparison to more traditional toys. Familiarity with the video game content and its dynamics benefits child mental health clinicians in their efforts to help children and their families.
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The authors examine the association between the selection factors used in a psychiatric residency program and subsequent clinical and academic performance among international medical graduate (IMG) candidates. ⋯ Further research is necessary to determine predictive factors related to psychiatric residents' performance, especially among IMGs. Adjusting current selection criteria may result in better outcomes for training programs and future psychiatrists.
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Sales visits, or detailing, by pharmaceutical industry representatives at academic institutions has been increasingly criticized. The authors surveyed psychiatric residents and faculty members on their views and interactions with representatives of the pharmaceutical industry. ⋯ Faculty and psychiatric residents and fellows do not view pharmaceutical representatives as having an important teaching role and mistrust the information they offer but believe that loss of industry financial support does adversely affect educational and other highly valued activities. They favor greater policy restrictions but do not support an outright ban on pharmaceutical support.
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Despite the acknowledged importance of ethics education in medical school, little empirical work has been done to assess the needs and preferences of medical students regarding ethics curricula. ⋯ The medical students surveyed strongly affirmed ethics education in medical school and expressed clear preferences for curricular topics and teaching methods.
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Awareness of the privileges and limits of one's role as physician, as well as recognition and respect for the patient as a human being, are central to ethical medical practice. The authors were particularly interested in examining the attitudes and perceived needs of psychiatric residents toward education on professional boundaries and relationships given the heightened current focus on professionalism and ethics. ⋯ The authors found a perceived need for more education for psychiatric residents for the majority of topics pertaining to boundaries and relationships. Residents who reported encountering ethical dilemmas more frequently wanted more education on these topics.