Effects of a psychiatric rotation on psychiatric knowledge and attitudes towards psychiatry in rotating interns.

The attitudes of trainees toward Psychiatry affect their career choice and ability to properly identify and manage emotional disorders in their patients. These attitudes are determined by several factors which include preclinical and clinical training among others. We report here a study of the attitude of interns toward psychiatry using the 30 item attitude toward psychiatry (ATP-30) scale. The ATP-30 and a multiple choice questionnaire examination (MCQE) in psychiatry were completed by 96 interns at the beginning and end of their compulsory four week psychiatry rotation. The degree of satisfaction of the trainees was rated in four areas--orientation, teaching/learning experience, overall rating of rotation and relevance of rotation to career choice. There was no significant change in the mean ATP-30 scores (N = 55) during the four week rotation, but the MCQE scores (N = 74) improved significantly (P less than 0.0001). A repeated analysis of variance for the four satisfaction variables by change score in MCQE and change score in ATP-30 did not show any significant main effects or significant interactions between these change scores except with relevance of rotation. Reasons for the absence of changes in the ATP-30 scores during this rotation were explored. The implications of the improved knowledge during this rotation are also discussed. We also conclude that attitudinal change and knowledge are two independent factors which should be assessed independently in trainees.