European Psychiatry - Volume 33 - March 2016

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24th European Congress of Psychiatry / European Psychiatry 33S (2016) S56–S71 S63
Disclosure of interest The author has not supplied his declaration
of competing interest.
W22
A European psychopharmacology
curriculum: The young psychiatrist’s
point of view
M. Spies ∗ asper
Medical University of Vienna, Department of Psychiatry and
Psychotherapy, Vienna, Austria
∗ Corresponding author.
It goes without saying that psychopharmacologic treatment
requires extensive knowledge of topics ranging from pharmacody-
namics and efficacy, to pharmacokinetics, side-effects, and toxicity.
Knowledge should be supplemented with experience regarding
applicability in a clinical setting. It is well accepted that com-
prehensive psychopharmacologic education is essential to convey
necessary knowledge and adequately prepare trainees for indepen-
dent practice Currently, a psychopharmacologic curriculum,
under the umbrella of the European Psychiatric Association, is in
preparation in order to emphasize the importance of psychophar-
macologic education in the context of psychiatric training and to
foster standardization within the European Union. The aim of this
presentation is to discuss psychopharmacologic education and pre-
requisites for an effective curriculum from the trainee’s point of
view. We will address challenges facing psychiatric trainees
and review existing curricula as well as literature in which they
are evaluated. Based on evaluation of the model curriculum by the
American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology, one of the most
broadly used psychopharmacologic curricula, it has been empha-
sized that an effective curriculum should be more than a list of
topics. It should also convey pedagogic strategies with a focus
on up-to-date technology, and provide a process through which
teacher and trainee progress can be assessed Reflection on
currently available curricula should aid in the development of an
effective and timely EU-wide psychopharmacologic curriculum.
Disclosure of interest The authors have not supplied their decla-
ration of competing interest.
References
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Psychiatry 2005;29(2):134–40.
[4] Zisook S, et al. Psychopharmacology curriculum field test. Acad
Psychiatry 2009;33(5):358–63.
How to overcome the negative image of
psychiatry: Facts and fiction
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Are psychiatrists an endangered
species?
H. Katschnig
IMEHPS.research, CEO, Vienna, Austria
Introduction Recruitment of young doctors into psychiatry is
declining in many countries, which might become a threat to the
survival of the profession.
Objectives To identify potential reasons for this threat.
Aims To look at psychiatry with concepts used by the sociology
of professions.
Methods Professions are characterized – and these concept will
be used for analysis here – by (1) ownership of a specialized body
of knowledge and skills, which defines the field of competence and
the scope of potential clients, including the demarcation fromother
professions; (2) holding a high status in society; (3) being granted
autonomy by society, e.g. in recruiting and excludingmembers; and
(4) being obliged, in return for the above, to guarantee high quality
standards in providing services and following ethical rules.
Results Six intertwined areas of concern are identified: three of
them, the increasing criticism by users and carers, the intrusion of
other professions, and psychiatry’s negative image in society, can
be traced back to problems with the other three concerning the
“ownership of a specialized body of knowledge and skills”. With
the preparation and advent of DSM-5, discussions about the lack of
validity of psychiatric disease entities have gone viral in the time
of the internet. The attempts to “carve nature at its joints” have
failed, and this is more and more perceived from outside, threat-
ening psychiatry’s status in society and potentially turning away to
be psychiatrists.
Conclusion Looking at psychiatry as a professionmay help to bet-
ter understand its current situation.
Disclosure of interest The author has not supplied his declaration
of competing interest.
W24
The negative image psychiatry from a
sociological perspective
A.M. Möller-Leimkühler ∗, H.J. Möller , W. Maier , W. Gaebel ,
P. Falkai
1 Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Department of Psychiatry
and Psychotherapy, Munich, Germany
2 University of Bonn, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy,
Bonn, Germany
3 Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Department of Psychiatry
and Psychotherapy, Düsseldorf, Germany
∗ Corresponding author.
The negative image of psychiatry is not only due to unfavourable
communication with the media, but is basically a problem of self-
conceptualization. It results both from unjustified prejudices of the
general public, mass media and health care professionals and of
own unfavourable coping with external and internal concerns.
Issues related to negative stereotypes of psychiatry include overes-
timation of coercion, associative stigma, lack of public knowledge,
need of simplification of complex mental issues, problem of the
continuum between normality and psychopathology, competition
with medical and non-medical disciplines, and psychopharmaco-
logical treatment.
Issues related to psychiatry’s own contribution to being under-
estimated include lack of a clear professional identity, lack of
biomarkers supporting clinical diagnoses, limited consensus about
best treatment options, lack of collaboration with other medical
disciplines and low recruitment rates among medical students.
Much can be improved to achieve a positive self-concept, however,
psychiatry will remain a profession with an exceptional position
among the medical disciplines which should be seen as its specific
strength.
Disclosure of interest The author has not supplied his declaration
of competing interest.