Teaching clinical psychopharmacology on an inpatient psychiatric research center

In this article we have shown how an inpatient Psychiatric Clinical Research Center has been used successfully to teach medical students and residents some basic principles of clinical psychopharmacology. Although teaching effectiveness and resident acceptance of the program have not been measured objectively (we intend to do this in the next 2 years), informal feedback about the CRC rotation has been enthusiastic. The clinical psychopharmacology curriculum in our department has been enhanced by the experience of trainees on a research unit. In the rapidly expanding area of psychopharmacology, where new drugs are continually coming on the market, the CRC provides an opportunity to demonstrate the biopsychosocial model and to explore the interface between the research and clinical aspects of psychopharmacology.