Developing large - group teaching in child and adolescent psychiatry to undergraduate medical students

The Royal College of Psychiatrists and the General Medical Council (GMC) identify teaching as a key competency and attribute of professional medical training and practice. Teaching child and adolescent psychiatry to undergraduates, however, poses certain challenges. The specialty calls for clinicians to consider complex biological, psychological and social processes, all in the context of child development. Learning child psychiatry therefore does not just involve memorising facts but also developing certain skills and attitudes, and acquiring a broader understanding through integration of concepts ranging from neuroscience to psychology and social anthropology. A certain amount of teaching and clinical exposure would therefore be required for students to gain a useful understanding of the specialty.