Psychopharmacology curriculum for psychiatric residents

Background: Postgraduate teaching of psychiatric residents in the important field of psychopharmacology and pharmacotherapy is insufficient regarding number of hours of theoretical teaching and practical training, content and structure and varies widely. Education based on controlled trials (evidence-based) may interfere with daily life real world experience and questions of doctors. Method: Data available from national psychiatric societies and from the literature are presented as well as a recently proposed German curriculum and learning catalogue. The latter includes general pharmacology including pharmacokinetics, neurobiological principles, clinical pharmacology of different classes of psychotropics (antidepressants, antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, anxiolytics, hypnotics, stimulants etc.), special aspects (e.g. pregnancy, geriatric patients) as well as ethical, legal and economic aspects. About 160 hours of theoretical education are proposed, clinical teaching should be interactive, with vignettes and supervision covering about 300 hours. There is a need for standardization of psychopharmacology-pharmacopsychiatry teaching at the European level.