Psychiatry
Psychiatry is an area of medicine that all healthcare professionals will frequently encounter throughout their careers.
From mild presentations of stress and depression to more severe psychiatric illnesses, our clinical understanding of these conditions has improved exponentially in recent decades.
Research into the genetic, biological, neurocognitive and environmental factors that influence the prevalence of psychiatric illnesses in the general population has a direct impact on our clinical applications to daily practice. Due to the complex nature of psychiatric illness, improved knowledge of psychiatry would benefit professionals working in fields supplementary to psychiatry or those likely to encounter psychiatric illness on a regular basis.
Available modules
As an occupational health nurse consultant a large proportion of my caseload is staff with mental health conditions; I wanted to update my evidence base and provide the best possible care for our employees. The stand-alone modules from the MSc in Psychiatry met my criteria of an entirely online programme, well resourced online library, with relevant content and a good mix of practical and theoretical content. I also wanted the option to use these modules towards a PG certificate or diploma. The content can be studied entirely in your own pace, supplemented by online real-time tutorials. The assessment is rigorous, with quite a heavy workload, but is accessible to a range of professional backgrounds and I have found the material extremely useful. Academic staff were supportive of peaks in my hospital workload, and there is a collaborative approach between students and academics. This is undoubtedly not the easiest or the cheapest course but is a well-led, good quality route in which healthcare professionals can have confidence.
More information
Each 20-credit, Level 7 module runs once per academic year and is delivered online as a part-time, distance learning module.
The psychiatry modules form part of the MSc in Psychiatry.