Presentation Information
[O-1-03]Limitations of R/S (Religion/Spirituality)Training Models in Contemporary Psychiatry
*Swayam Bagaria (Harvard Divinity School(United States of America))
Keywords:
Cultural Psychiatry,Religion/Spirituality,Medical Anthropology
Religion and Spirituality (R/S) is now well-established as an important area of competency for psychiatrists specifically and mental health professionals (MHPs) more generally. Current R/S research and training is based on a wide range of psychometric tools and standardized interviews to measure religious commitments. Yet, these initiatives lack inclusive design and a rigorous engagement with the psycho-social aspects and lived experiences of R/S involvement and efficacy. This oral presentation outlines four key lacunae in current R/S initiatives: 1) Religiosity gap: between MH practitioners and patients; 2) Research gap: the mechanisms through which R/S involvement leads to better outcomes; 3) Psycho-social gap: bracketing of patient’s familial and social networks in assessing their R/S trajectories, and 4) Diversity gap: the narrow western context within which most initiatives have been designed. By doing so, the presentation will outline the need for a rigorous anthropologically driven training for diagnostic reasoning and treatment design in contemporary psychiatry.