Morehouse Aims to Diversify Psychiatric Workforce

Morehouse university School of Medicine in Atlanta was very successful in recruiting medical students from the class of 2006-2007 into psychiatry residency programs, with seven of its small class of 38 medical students choosing that path. (see also Original article: Psychiatry Department Finds Key to Recruitment Success).

According to Gail Maddox, M.D., chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Morehouse, medical students learn about many aspects of psychiatry in terms of subspecialties and settings.

In an interview with Psychiatric News, Maddox noted that medical students are exposed to psychiatric practice with different populations of patients typically seen in the public and private sectors. The students also are invited to attend professional psychiatry meetings such as the Georgia Psychiatric Physicians Association meeting and APA's annual meeting.

Morehouse School of Medicine became independent from Morehouse College, a historically black college, in 1981, and its student body is ethnically and racially diverse. Former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, M.D., Ph.D., directs the Satcher Health Leadership Institute at Morehouse School of Medicine.

“We are proud to be contributing to the diversity of the psychiatric workforce,” Maddox said, noting that Morehouse students learn about cultural issues that relate to psychopathology and mental health disparities among minorities. “The mission of our medical school is to teach students about the importance of working with underserved populations.”▪