The internship year: a negative view

The decision to add a fourth year of training with emphasis on a primary care internship experience has created serious problems for most psychiatric residency training programs. The logistic problems involved in having a department of psychiatry develop an internship program are formidable. The experiences being provided are less than optimum. Conceivably, the logistic and quality uncertainties that now characterize some PGY-I programs may be a factor in discouraging medical graduates from entering psychiatry. The reasons for moving to an internship experience are also questionable. There are no data which suggest that the new training will produce better psychiatrists. Nor can the case for the internship be supported by past experience or an analysis of the educational needs of today's psychiatrist. Dr. John Romano comments on the author's presentation.