Required and Elective Experiences During the 4th Year: An Analysis of ACGME Accredited Psychiatry Residency Program Websites

• Published in: Academic psychiatry Vol. 40; no. 5; pp. 816 - 820
• Main Authors: Vestal, Heather S., Belitsky, Richard, Bernstein, Carol A., Chaukos, Deanna, Cohen, Mitchell B., Dickstein, Leah J., Hilty, Donald M., Hutner, Lucy, Sakman, Ferda, Scheiber, Stephen C., Wrzosek, Marika I., Silberman, Edward K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01.10.2016; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Accreditation; Addictions; Career Planning; Child & adolescent psychiatry; Clinics; Curriculum; Data Analysis; Didacticism; Emergency medical care; Geriatrics; Graduate Medical Education; Humans; Hypnotherapy; In Brief Report; Internship and Residency; Internships; Medical Education; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Mental health; Neurology; Outpatient care facilities; Psychiatry; Psychiatry - education; Psychopharmacology; Psychotherapy; Research Methodology; Scholarships & fellowships; Teaching; United States; Websites; United States > US; Electives; Medical education; Curriculum; Psychiatry; Residency; Requirements
• ISSN: 1042-9670; 1545-7230
• DOI: 10.1007/s40596-016-0507-1

Objective The objective of this study was to assess and describe required and elective components of the 4th post-graduate year (PGY4) in psychiatry residency programs. Methods We reviewed the websites of all 193 2014–2015 ACGME accredited psychiatry residency programs for content describing the specific components of the PGY4 year. Results Nearly all residency programs (99 %) had some form of required experiences during the PGY4 year. Ninety-four percent had clinical requirements for PGY4 residents, with longitudinal outpatient clinic being the most common (77 %). All programs offered some elective time during PGY4, but the amount of time ranged from 2 months to 100 %. Conclusion Virtually all residency programs include some requirements in the 4th year (most commonly didactics and outpatient clinic) in addition to a broad array of elective experiences. Although 3 years may suffice for residents to complete ACGME requirements, a variety of factors may motivate programs to include required 4th year curricula. Future studies should explore the rationales for and possible benefits of programmatic requirements throughout 4 versus only 3 years of psychiatric training.