New doctors urged to consider psychiatry, as empty posts rise

Getty/Alena Kravchenko

By Sarah Lowden

A new campaign is urging medical students and newly-qualified doctors to consider a career in psychiatry.

The celebrity-backed #ChoosePsychiatry campaign is being organised by the Royal College of Psychiatrists who said demand for mental health treatment is increasing.

An estimated 1.6 million people referred to community-based services in England were waiting for treatment at the end of March 2024, it said.

However the number of consultant psychiatrists in the UK has been falling, with the college’s own census in 2023 indicating that the total number of filled posts decreased from 7,056 in 2021 to 5,133 in 2023, a reduction of 27.3%.

There was also a fall in the number of filled SAS psychiatrist posts during the same time period.

Stephen Fry, Ruby Wax and Jo Brand have all talked openly about mental health issues, including their own experiences, or those of people close to them.

Fry, who is honorary fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “Young people preparing for medical careers are realising more and more that the most exciting frontier in medicine is the human mind.