How much psychiatry are medical students really learning? : a reappraisal after two decades

The results of a survey conducted in 1986 of the attitudes of nonpsychiatric house staff toward their psychiatric training in medical school were compared with the results of a similar survey conducted in 1966. Compared to the 1966 cohort, the 1986 cohort reported markedly reduced emphasis on the teaching of psychodynamics and an increased emphasis on neurobiology. Psychiatry continued to be regarded as the most poorly taught and the least well learned subject in medical school. However, a significantly smaller proportion of the later cohort than the earlier group felt they had not learned as much psychiatry as they would need to practice medicine. Areas of teaching singled out for criticism included the quality of instruction and its relevance to patient management.