Teaching psychiatry in medicine: the development of a unique clinical course

The authors describe the development of a course that systematically incorporates psychiatric and psychosocial concepts into the teaching of clinical medicine. Weekly two-hour seminars with patient presentations are given as an integral part of the required clerkships in six disciplines and have the overall goal of preparing students to meet the psychosocial as well as the biomedical needs of their patients. This course has had a significant impact on student-physicians' attitudes as they relate to comprehensive patient care. Efforts to improve teaching skills and to integrate the seminars into the host clerkships have contributed to the success of the course. Careful planning and evaluation also were crucial to its development.