Training in the Management of Psychobehavioral Conditions: A Needs Assessment Survey of Emergency Medicine Residents

Mental health-related ED visits are increasing. Despite this trend, most emergency medicine (EM) residency programs devote little time to psychiatry education. This study aimed to identify EM residents' perceptions of training needs in emergency psychiatry and self-confidence in managing patients with psychobehavioral conditions.

A needs assessment survey was distributed to residents at 15 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-accredited EM programs spanning the U.S. Survey items addressed amount and type of training in psychiatry during residency, perceived training needs in psychiatry, and self-confidence performing various clinical skills related to emergency psychiatric care. Residents used a 5-point scale (1 = nothing; 5 = very large amount) to rate their learning needs in a variety of topic areas related to behavioral emergencies (e.g., medically clearing patients, substance use disorders). Using a scale from 0 to 100, residents rated their confidence in their ability to independently perform various clinical skills related to emergency psychiatric care (e.g., differentiating a psychiatric presentation from delirium).

Of the 632 residents invited to participate, 396 (63%) responded. Twelve percent of respondents reported completing a psychiatry rotation during EM residency. One of the 15 participating programs had a required psychiatry rotation. Residents reported that their program used lectures (56%) and/or supervised training in the ED (35%) to teach residents about psychiatric emergencies. Most residents reported minimal involvement in the treatment of patients with psychiatric concerns. The majority of residents (59%) believed that their program should offer more education on managing psychiatric emergencies. Only 14% of residents felt "quite" or "extremely" prepared to treat psychiatric patients. Overall, residents reported the lowest levels of confidence and highest need for more training related to counseling suicidal patients and treating psychiatric issues in special populations (e.g., pregnant women, elderly, and children).

Most EM residents desire more training in managing psychiatric emergencies than is currently provided.