Development of foundation year 1 psychiatry posts: implications for practice

The phrase ‘recruitment crisis’ in psychiatry is unfortunately not an alien concept, with the number of UK graduates entering psychiatry not matching workforce needs. In fact, recruitment ‘crisis’ is perhaps a misnomer, as recruitment into psychiatry has been consistently low at around 4% of UK graduates since the 1970s (Goldacre 2005). In the past, overseas recruits to the specialty have compensated for low uptake by UK medics. However, recent changes in immigration law and visa requirements have unmasked the recruitment deficit among UK graduates. The Department of Health has argued that ‘psychiatry is a recruiting, not a selecting speciality’ (Department of Health 2004). This reflects the concern that low numbers of applicants for psychiatry posts may make it difficult to recruit only the ‘best’ and most suitable medical graduates. Furthermore, low numbers in training schemes may have a negative impact on service provision and those who do enter training. Development of foundation year 1 psychiatry posts: implications for practice