A Korean survey on qualities and definition of a good psychiatrist.
The definition of a "good" psychiatrist has varied over the past decades due to changing roles of psychiatrists. Studies on the qualities of "good" psychiatrists have been completed in many countries. However, no such study has been undertaken in Korea. In Korea, recent growing interest in psychiatry demands the identification of qualities for a good psychiatrist. The purpose of this study was to define the qualities of a good psychiatrist in Korea, subsequently facilitating the improvement of psychiatric training programs. The questionnaire was based on a Singaporean survey with the permission from the original authors. Respondents were divided into patient group and psychiatrist group. The 40-item questionnaire contained items grouped into four themes: Professional, Personal Values, Academic Executive and Relationship. Of the four themes, both patient and psychiatrist groups considered Professional as the most important, whereas Academic Executive as the least important. The mean scores for all items of each theme in the patient group were higher than those in the psychiatrist group, reflecting higher expectations for good psychiatrist in the patient group. Patients emphasized Relationship more than psychiatrists did. It is concluded that a good psychiatrist in Korea can be defined as "a good communicator and listener with a professional manner, who respects confidentiality and has good doctor-patient relationships."
Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Konkuk Unversity, Chungju, Korea.
Ji Hyun
0000-0003-1834-4867
JH
Kim
Department of Psychological Medicine, National University Hospital, Singapore.
Phern-Chern
0000-0001-7972-3030
PC
Tor
Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
Joel
0000-0003-2171-8321
J
King
Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Konkuk Unversity, Chungju, Korea.
Jeong Seok
0000-0003-0758-5729
JS
Seo
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D044466:Asian People; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010361:Patients / Q000523:psychology*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology*; D011570:Psychiatry / Q000145:classification*; D056910:Republic of Korea; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014175:Translating
Clinical Competence; Comparative Study; Education; Ethics; Internship and Residency; Physician-Patient Relations; Psychiatry; Questionnaires