Medical student and psychiatrist perceptions towards a psychiatric career
| Date | 11 December 2017 |
| Pages | 315-323 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/MHRJ-03-2017-0015 |
| Published date | 11 December 2017 |
| Author | Thomas Flamini,Natasha R. Matthews,George S. Castle,Elliot M. Jones-Williams |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Mental health |
Medical student and psychiatrist
perceptions towards a psychiatric career
Thomas Flamini, Natasha R. Matthews, George S. Castle and Elliot M. Jones-Williams
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to investigate perceptions towards a career in psychiatry among
medical students and psychiatrists and identify how recruitment into the specialty may be improved.
Design/methodology/approach –This study locally compares medical student and psychiatric doctor
responses to a structured online survey and structured interviews with key managerial figures in the Humber
NHS Foundation Trust.
Findings –Comparison across two main areas (pre-decision exposure to psychiatry and reasons for
considering a psychiatric career) found that both students and doctors were influenced to make a choice
about a career in psychiatry during medical school. Medical students found compatibility with family life to be
more important when considering psychiatry, whereas doctors cited content-based reasons as significant
pull factors. Stigma and fear of being harmed deterred some students from choosing a career in psychiatry.
Structured interview responses reiterated the importance of pre-medical school and undergraduate
mentorship in bolstering future recruitment to psychiatry.
Practical implications –Medical students perceive certain career issues differently to their postgraduate
counterparts. Widening the content-based appeal of psychiatry and optimising the medical school
experience of the specialty via varied and high-quality placements may be a key step towards tackling the
national shortfall in qualified psychiatrists.
Originality/value –This is the first published study comparing medical student and psychiatric doctor
perceptions of a career in psychiatry.
Keywords Stigma, Recruitment, Psychiatry, Medical education
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Psychiatry continues to be notoriously unpopular as a specialty among medical undergraduates
and postgraduates (Goldacre et al., 2013). In 2014, demand for psychiatrists in the UK was
predicted to outstrip supply within five years, unless alternative staffing models were adopted
(Centre for Workforce Intelligence, 2014). The issue of unfilled psychiatric posts is a staffing crisis
with national consequences; however, addressing the issue involves the ability of individual NHS
Trusts to tackle local staffing deficits. The growing burden of mental illness increasingly needs to
be met by recruiting locum candidates, causing expenditure to spiral, while masking the extent of
vacant and unfilled posts (Royal College of Psychiatrists Census (RCPsych Census), 2015).
Many studies have investigated the motivation behind choosing psychiatry as a career (Walter
et al., 2003; Maidment, 2003; Maidment et al., 2004; Cutler et al., 2006; Creed et al., 2010;
Barras and Harris, 2012; Andlauer et al., 2013; Denman et al., 2015; Adekunte et al., 2016), with
the intention of informing evidence-based strategies. Unfortunately, the last five years have not
reflected an adequate improvement in psychiatric recruitment and retention, and in fact show
significant increases in the number of unfilled consultant posts (RCPsych Census, 2015).
Most researchers have studied medical student and doctor populations separately and there
is a lack of data comparing how these different groups perceive the same career issues.
Differences between students and psychiatrists will help define the factors needed to encourage
a student with an interest in mental health into becoming a practicing psychiatrist. Perceptions of
Received 30 March 2017
Revised 13 August 2017
Accepted 25 August 2017
The authors would like to thank
Dr D. Lawley and Dr S. Jones for
their support and advice
throughout this project, as well as
those involved in the distribution
and completion of the online
surveys.
Thomas Flamini is a Medical
Student at the Hull York
Medical School, University of
Hull, Hull, UK.
Natasha R. Matthews,
George S. Castle and
Elliot M. Jones-Williams are all
based at the Hull York Medical
School, University of Hull,
Hull, UK.
DOI 10.1108/MHRJ-03-2017-0015 VOL. 22 NO. 4 2017, pp. 315-323, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 1361-9322
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MENTALHEALTH REVIEW JOURNAL
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PAG E 31 5
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