Dr Maria Atkins, chair of the Royal College of Psychiatrists in Wales, said:
“Wales continues to have one of the highest fill rates of psychiatry training across the UK and this is great news for our specialist mental health services and our patients.
“Our Choose Psychiatry scheme as well as the Train, Work, Live programme has helped enormously in showcasing psychiatry as a very rewarding profession.“We must continue to do all we can to support both trainees and their trainers to achieve excellence in their work and promote psychiatry as a positive career choice.”
Deputy Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing, Lynne Neagle, said:
“Since 2017 core psychiatry training has been a key focus for the Train Work Live campaign, with incentives including payment to cover the cost of sitting MRCPsych membership exams.
“The rise in the number of people training in this field shows that the campaign has consistently helped attract people to Wales.
“As a government we are committed to encouraging more people to enjoy a successful NHS Wales career and build on the success of our Train Work Live campaign.”
Paul Emmerson, consultant psychiatrist and head of school at RCPsych in Wales, added:
“The success of recruitment over the past few years means that we now have over 100 doctors at various stages of psychiatric training in Wales.
“It is our job to make sure that they receive the best training possible and hopefully remain in Wales for the long term.”
The six-year specialist psychiatry training programme is the final step in the journey to become a consultant psychiatrist – the most senior doctor specialising in mental health.
For further information, please contact:
- Email: oliver.john@rcpsych.ac.uk
- Web: https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/wales
- Contact Name: Ollie John
- Twitter: @RCPsychWales
- Out-of-hours contact number: 02922 33 1080