TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2021//
TI  - Can an online mental health training programme improve physician supervisors' behaviour towards trainees?
JO  - Internal medicine journal
A1  - Gayed, Aimée
A1  - Kugenthiran, Nathasha
A1  - Lamontagne, Anthony D.
A1  - Christensen, Helen
A1  - Glozier, Nick
A1  - Harvey, Samuel B.
SP  - 1441
EP  - 1449
VL  - 51
IS  - 9
N2  - BACKGROUND: Physician trainees have elevated rates of psychological distress, mental disorders and suicide. Physician supervisors can support the mental health needs of trainees.  AIMS: To test the feasibility and acceptability of a tailored online mental health training programme and to ascertain the potential effectiveness of the programme to alter the confidence and behaviours of physician supervisors.  METHODS: Thirty Australian hospital-based physicians who were supervising physician trainees participated in this quasi-experimental pre-post pilot study. All received the intervention that comprised 12 5-min modules to complete over a 3-week period. Baseline and post-intervention data were collected. The primary outcome evaluated participants' confidence to respond to trainees experiencing mental ill-health and promote a mentally healthy workplace. Secondary outcomes evaluated change in self-reported behaviour, mental health knowledge and stigmatising attitudes. Differences in mean scale scores for each outcome measure from baseline and post-intervention were compared using paired sample t-tests.  RESULTS: Thirty physicians completed the baseline assessment and 23 (76.7%) completed all programme modules. Most participants found the programme engaging, interesting and useful. Post-intervention data, available for 25 (83.3%) participants, showed a significant increase in participants' knowledge of their role in supporting trainees under their supervision (P = 0.002), confidence to initiate conversations about mental health with staff (P < 0.001), and application of preventive and responsive supervisory behaviours to support the mental health needs of those they supervise (P < 0.001).  CONCLUSIONS: This online mental health training programme for physician supervisors was feasible and associated with improved confidence and behaviour to support the mental health needs of trainees they supervised.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1444-0903
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/imj.15207
ID  - ref1
ER  -