The Psychopharmacology Training Gap in Accredited Clinical Psychology Programs.

Psychopharmacology is common in mental health care. Health service psychologists routinely provide services to clients prescribed psychotropic medications, and work within multidisciplinary collaborations. As a result, foundational knowledge of psychopharmacology is necessary. The primary objectives of this study were to evaluate the number of American Psychological Association (APA)-accredited doctoral programs in clinical psychology that require a course in clinical psychopharmacology in their curriculum and to identify potential barriers preventing programs from offering this coursework. All clinical psychology programs accredited by the APA were surveyed to determine their requirement of a course related to psychopharmacology. Program information was initially reviewed online and in the absence of clear indication within their program websites, survey questions were sent to program administrators. Data were obtained from 216 of the 254 APA-accredited programs (85%). Of these, 66 programs (31%) required a course in psychopharmacology. This equates to 48% of the total number of students from programs where data were obtained. Barriers to coursework being offered were identified in 25% of responding programs, reflecting lack of room in the curriculum, insufficient faculty expertise, and inconsistent student interest. Despite the frequent utilization of psychotropic medications in mental health treatment, less than a third of responding doctoral programs required a course in psychopharmacology in their curriculums. It is argued that a foundational understanding of clinical psychopharmacology may be particularly important for those working in integrated behavioral health care settings. APA accreditation status should include that graduate training curricula require a course in psychopharmacology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]