Psychiatric Training in Pakistan

High rates of mental illness, particularly depression have been reported in Pakistan. The health system is both under developed and poorly resourced. It is therefore not surprising that psychiatric training is at its very early stages, at both undergraduate and the postgraduate level. In order to look after the mentally ill patients radical changes need to be implemented in training of doctors. Medical curriculum needs to place more focus on psychiatry. This should not only help junior doctors in understanding the need for psychiatry, but will also prepare them for the challenges they will face as a General Practitioner or a Family Physician. Similarly, postgraduate training can be made more useful by placing more emphasis on community based and primary care psychiatry and psychotherapy; especially family interventions. The training needs to aim towards preparing psychiatrists who are not only clinicians, but can be agents of change in the society, through health education.