PSYCHIATRIC MEDICAL EDUCATION AMONG NEGRO PHYSICIANS

1. From a general standpoint it is clear that the widespread interest in psychiatric medical education among Negroes has been alive only 10 years.

2. The psychiatric information dispensed at the medical school level, though not up to the 370-hour level as recommended by the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry in their report on Medical Education, is well above 152 hours, which is quoted by that committee as the average for medical schools in the United States. However, the departments of neuropsychiatry at each Negro medical school urgently need expanded facilities, increase in professional personnel, and wider application of the ancillary disciplines such as psychiatric social work and clinical psychology.

3. It is apparent that a new and wider interest in psychiatry is being manifested by Negro physicians by their seeking psychiatric training on a graduate level in recognized hospitals, but contributions to medical literature and interest in research are still in need of stimulation.

4. There is evidence that the Negro general practitioner in various communities of the United States is seeking to improve his understanding and information regarding psychiatric principles by attending various postgraduate meetings in neuropsychiatry.