Impairment Prevention in the Training Years

The new Mental Health Program for Physicians in Training, at UCLA, offers free psychiatric evaluation and short-term psychotherapy to UCLA medical students and house officers, utilizing a large group of physician volunteers from the clinical and regular faculties. The program features complete confidentiality and an off-campus setting and provides help in a number of specialized areas. It also conducts research on stress in medical education. A basic aim is to promote a sense of community in the medical profession by demonstrating the concern of mature practitioners for their young colleagues. It also seeks to foster greater sensitivity among young physicians by educating them about the importance of their own psychological needs. The UCLA program provides a model for mental health services that are low in cost, both to medical trainees and to the training institution, at a time of severe budget shrinkage.