Old Age Psychiatry: The British Experience

Abstract

Since 1989 Old Age Psychiatry has been officially recognised as a subspecialty of psychiatry in the United Kingdom, with its own staff and training requirements. In 1993 there were 405 consultant psychiatrists working in the subspecialty (Benbow and Jolley 1996) a figure which by 1997 is probably nearer to 450. The growth in these numbers is shown in Table 1. After completing basic psychiatric training intending specialists undergo “higher” training in old age psychiatry. Basic psychiatric training gives opportunities for most general trainees to obtain some experience of old age psychiatry, and specialisation comes only after the basic training. Many family medicine trainees now also spend time in old age psychiatry, and for trainee psychogeriatricians and geriatricians experience of each other’s work is encouraged (British Geriatrics Society 1997).