Teaching psychiatry in Ethiopia

Area of Science:

• Global Mental Health
• Psychiatric Education
• International Collaboration

Background:

• Growing need for psychiatric training in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
• Opportunity for high-income country (HIC) psychiatrists to share expertise and learn from LMIC contexts.
• Limited formal psychiatric training resources in many LMICs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the experiences of HIC trainees organizing a revision course in an LMIC setting.
• To explore the collaborative process between HIC and LMIC psychiatric departments.
• To highlight the mutual benefits of international psychiatric training initiatives.

Main Methods:

• Three psychiatric trainees from a London hospital collaborated with Addis Ababa University.
• Organized and delivered a revision course for psychiatry trainees in Ethiopia.
• Documented experiences and observations during the collaboration.

Main Results:

• Successful organization and delivery of a revision course.
• Valuable learning experiences for both visiting trainees and local participants.
• Strengthened professional relationships and understanding between institutions.

Conclusions:

• International collaborations in psychiatric education are feasible and mutually beneficial.
• Sharing expertise can significantly enhance psychiatric training capacity in LMICs.
• Such initiatives contribute to global mental health workforce development.