Abstract
Existing research suggests that personal therapy positively contributes to the continued personal well-being and ongoing professional development of mental health professionals, including psychiatrists. The aim of this research is to examine the use and characterization of personal therapy by consultant and trainee psychiatrists based in Ireland. This included an examination of participants who reported delivering psychotherapeutic interventions and their confidence in these skills. An anonymous survey was designed based on two existing questionnaires used in previous studies. Various recruitment strategies were employed to maximize response. A total of 139 psychiatrists responded to the survey; 44.6% reported having engaged in personal therapy at some point in their lives. Most respondents described their psychotherapy as short-term, supportive and once weekly. Burnout was listed among the top reasons for seeking therapy. By providing new insights into the status of psychotherapy within contemporary psychiatric practice, this study could thus be of interest to psychiatric educators and curriculum developers. For people who present to psychiatric services, psychotherapy still has a critical role in the treatment of mental distress. Psychiatrists therefore need sufficient exposure to and experience of the differing psychotherapy modalities to confidently treat or appropriately refer their patients. Concerningly, only a minority of the participants in this research had confidence in their psychotherapeutic technique, and many indicated only seeking personal psychotherapy when they had reached a crisis of burnout.