Psychiatry residency education in countries with low- and middle-income economies

Abstract

Utilizing scarce resources creatively becomes challenging for psychiatrists in impoverished countries. Balancing academic duties with public health needs compounds economic hardship, having to face concomitant problems of low wages, personnel shortages, large-volume practices, societal stigma, and discrimination. This chapter reviews how economic disparities in most of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, combined with psychiatric workforce inequities, create resource deficiencies having to culturally adapt educational initiatives. We recommend a learning inclusive approach that incorporates meeting public health needs and highest standards of care educational models. Specific examples will be given of collaborative didactic programs that connect mentors and institutions from high-income countries with trainees and faculty in underserved areas.