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Psychiatry Residency Program

Welcome to the Psychiatry Residency Program at the University of Alberta.

Interview/CaRMS Specific Information 

Interview process:

Candidates will be short-listed for interviews based on the file review using a File Review Rating Scale.  All interviews will be conducted virtually using Zoom as our interview platform. There will be a welcome with the Program Director(s) on the day of the interview and we will conduct interviews using the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) format. An email with more detailed instructions and a schedule will be sent out prior.

Notification/Invitation:

Program will notify all applicants through CaRMS Online and will send email invitations directly to applicants selected for an interview.

Live Events

Meet & Greet dates listed on CanPrepp

We are facilitating an opportunity for the CARMS applicants to meet with the PD and the Resident body to understand our program as well as attract the best applicants.

The scheduled Zoom meetings are as follows:

Meet and Greet with the Program Director

Option 1 (CMG):
Date: Sept. 26, 2024
Time: 5 - 7 p.m.
Zoom Link

Option 2 (CMG)
Date: Oct. 3, 2024
Time: 5 - 7 p.m.
Zoom Link

Option 3 (AIMG)
Date: Oct. 9, 2024
Time: 5 - 7 p.m.
Zoom Link

Resident Town Hall

Date: Oct. 8, 2024
Time: 6:30 - 7:30 p.m.
Zoom Link

Contact Us

Dr. Yanbo Zhang
Residency Program Director

Dr. Lenka Zedkova and Dr. Michael Martyna
Residency Associate Program Directors

Dana Black and Sreya Jacob
Residency Program Administrators
Email: psycpgme@ualberta.ca

 

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Dr. Yanbo Zhang
Residency Program Director

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Dr. Lenka Zedkova
Residency Associate Program Director

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Dr. Michael Martyna
Residency Associate Program Director

Welcome to Our Program

The University of Alberta is renowned for its excellence in education. Edmonton is a vibrant and progressive city with a large catchment area. Residents in our program will gain expertise working with a diverse population. In the past year, we have been joined by a new Department Chair, Dr. David Ross. Dr. Ross was previously a member of the Department of Psychiatry at Yale and has expertise in designing, implementing, and disseminating innovative educational resources. He is a co-founder and Executive Director of the National Neuroscience Curriculum Initiative, which aims to integrate cutting-edge neuroscience into psychiatry. With his leadership, we are undertaking innovative changes in education within the department and program.

Sincerely, 

Psychiatry Education Program Team

 

Dana Black

Dana Black

Residency Program Administrator

Sreya Jacob

Sreya Jacob

Residency Program Administrator

Our Program

Psychiatry is a five-year program. The aim of the Residency Program in Psychiatry is to train physicians in clinical and academic psychiatry, leading to certification by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. 

Our program supports the personal and professional goals of exceptional psychiatry residents, who are passionate about excellence in patient care, teaching, and scholarly inquiry. The PGY-1 year is a basic clinical training year (BCT), intended to consolidate knowledge and skills learned in medical school. All residents receive training in general Adult Psychiatry, Child Psychiatry, Geriatric Psychiatry, Consultation Liaison, Psychotherapy, Collaborative Care, Concurrent Disorders, Dual Diagnosis, as well as treatment of severe and persistent mental illness. Subspecialty training is available in Forensic Psychiatry, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and Geriatric Psychiatry. An Area of Focused Competence (AFC) in Addictions is available and can be completed in the senior years of residency.

Elective opportunities for senior residents are extensive, and include Community Psychiatry, Sleep Disorders, Research (including Medical Education projects), ER/CL, Inpatient Psychiatry, Addictions, EMDR, DBT, Neuropsychiatry, Gender Clinic, rTMS, Physician Health, Clinical Ethics, among others. Considerable flexibility in electives is emphasized, giving the individual resident an excellent opportunity to pursue areas of interest. There are many opportunities to be involved in research, with supervisors who have supported residents to attain publications during residency.

Program Highlights

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The roles of the physician include clinical, research, and teaching, and at the University of Alberta we excel in all domains.

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We have an ideal clinical environment in the greater Edmonton area with a catchment of over 1 million people.

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U of A offers all three subspecialty programs: Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatry, and Geriatric Psychiatry. We also have an Area of Focussed Competence (AFC) in Addictions, which can be completed in the fifth year of residency.

The program director and associate program director for the psychiatry residency program have multiple teaching awards, and we strongly value teaching skills in our residents.

The U of A has the opportunity to pursue a Master of Science simultaneous to the residency for those residents with a strong research interest, or a Master of Education in Health Sciences for those interested more in teaching.

Our clinicians and researchers have varied interests and are keen on having learners.

The program provides many opportunities to engage in teaching with pre-clerkship medical students, clinical clerks, or senior to junior resident teaching.

Our resident-teachers are second to none, with many being recognized by the U of A Post-Graduate Medical Education office with awards for their teaching skills.

Overview Video

Meet some of the educators and current residents of the U of A Psychiatry program. Learn about the city of Edmonton and what makes our program so special. 

Residency at a Glance

Learn about each year of the program with an overview of each year.

PGY-1 Basic Training Year
The basic clinical training year includes rotations in family medicine, emergency medicine, neurology, brain injury, psychiatry, Rural/Suburban Psychiatry, and internal medicine. Three months are spent in psychiatry rotations including Emergency Room Psychiatry, Addictions Psychiatry, and Fundamentals of Psychiatry. Two elective months occur during the PGY-1 year; one month for a psychiatry elective experience, and one month for a non-psychiatric medical rotation.
PGY-2 and PGY-3
The resident begins training in general adult psychiatry during the PGY-2 year, which includes rotations in inpatient and outpatient psychiatry. These rotations will occur at one of the main hospitals as well as at several community clinics. The PGY-2 year of training fulfills the Royal College requirements for training in general adult inpatient and outpatient psychiatry, as well as the longitudinal experience in treatment of the Severely and Persistently Mentally ill. During the PGY-3 and PGY-4 years, the remainder of the Royal College core requirements are scheduled.

Residents are assigned a supervisor on an annual basis for psychotherapy training. Residents begin psychotherapy training in the PGY-2 year and continue for a minimum of two years. Senior residents are encouraged to continue in supervised psychotherapy. Training in family therapy and/or group therapy, also as a supervised experience, is mandatory and may be provided at several levels of training. Training in cognitive behavioral therapy is mandatory and is provided for eight months in the PGY-2 year. 

Expectations for resident research are in keeping with Royal College Guidelines. Work includes Resident Journal Club, Grand Rounds, and work on a Scholarly Project or QI project with a mentor.

Twice a year, practice OSCE examinations are scheduled for PGY-2 to PGY-5 residents to help prepare them for the Royal College OSCE exams. Senior residents additionally improve skills by acting as examiners for junior residents in the practice OSCE exams. A multiple choice, self-assessment exam is offered (COPE) yearly.
PGY-4 and PGY-5

The final two years introduce increasing independence in the practice of clinical psychiatry. In addition, residents may spend time in a subspecialty, in research, or in a field of medicine related to psychiatry. During the final year of the program, considerable flexibility is available for residents to pursue particular areas of interest and explore career options. 

In PGY-4, the remainder of the Royal College core requirements are completed including Rehab Psychiatry, Shared Care, and Consultation Liaison Psychiatry. PGY-5 is devoted to electives. There is an option in PGY-5 to take a Medical Education/Consolidation of Learning elective.

Training Sites

Residents of the Psychiatry Residency Program train at multiple facilities throughout the city of Edmonton and surrounding areas.

University of Alberta Hospital 

PGY-1 core ER psychiatry rotation; PGY-2 core general adult inpatient; PGY-4 consultation liaison and shared care rotations; elective available in ER psychiatry, eating disorders, sleep disorders, day/evening treatment programs, group/family/individual psychotherapy, addictions, gender clinic, research and others

Royal Alexandra Hospital 

PGY-1 core ER psychiatry rotation; PGY-2 core general adult outpatient/inpatient psychiatry; PGY-3 child psychiatry; PGY-4 consultation liaison psychiatry and shared care rotations; and opportunities for electives in general adult psychiatry, psychotherapy (i.e. DBT), ER psychiatry and addictions.

Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital

PGY-3 core geriatric Psychiatry and child Psychiatry

Grey Nuns Community Hospital

PGY-2 core general adult inpatient/outpatient; electives in research, outpatient clinics, and CL/ER Psychiatry

Misericordia Community Hospital 

PGY-2 core general adult inpatient/outpatient

Villa Caritas

PGY-3 core geriatric psychiatry

Alberta Hospital Edmonton (Provincial Psychiatric hospital)

Core training in PGY-2 Inpatient rotation; PGY-4 Rehabilitation psychiatry; electives in Forensics

Edmonton Mental Health Clinic (Regional Mental Health Services)

PGY-1 core Community Psychiatry rotation; PGY-2 Outpatient rotation; PGY-4 Shared Care rotation; and electives in Edmonton Early Psychosis Intervention Clinic, Assertive Community Treatment, and Neuropsychiatry

Child and Adolescent Services Association (CASA)

Child psychiatry outpatient electives and selectives

Community Mental Health Clinics (such as Primary Care Networks)

Multiple community clinics provide opportunities for shared care training, in various areas including family medicine, general adult, military, addictions, sleep, stroke, and early psychosis

Edmonton Hope and Wellness Centre 

Core training in PGY-2 Outpatient rotation; senior electives in EMDR, DBT, and group therapy

Psychotherapy

Residents are assigned a supervisor on an annual basis for psychotherapy training. Residents begin psychotherapy training in the PGY-2 year and continue for a minimum of two years. Senior residents are encouraged to continue in supervised psychotherapy. Training in family therapy and/or group therapy, also as a supervised experience, is mandatory and may be provided at several levels of training. Training in cognitive behavioral therapy is mandatory and is provided for eight months in the PGY-2 year. There are additional opportunities for training in interpersonal, mindfulness, and couples therapies. Seminars related to psychotherapy are provided in each training year, commensurate with level of training.

Research

The Department of Psychiatry at the University of Alberta aims to encourage, enhance and evaluate scholarly activity and research within the residency program. As scholars, all doctors should demonstrate a lifelong commitment to reflective learning, as well as the creation, dissemination, application, and translation of medical knowledge. Research activities in the department range from laboratory-based biomarkers to clinical research, conducted by a diverse group of outstanding scientists who are internationally recognized in their fields. These include neuropsychiatry, mood and anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, addiction, neuromodulation, computational neuroscience, and psychotherapy among others. World-class investigations are being conducted in these areas, using approaches including neurochemistry, neuropharmacology, clinical psychopharmacology, pharmacogenomics, psychiatric genetics, health economics, epidemiology, and health outcome measurement. Research Groups and Units within the department include the Translational Psychiatry Research Group, the Bebensee Schizophrenia Research Unit, the Brain Neurobiology Research Unit, Depression and Stress Disorders, the Neurochemical Research Unit, and the Psychotherapy Research Group. 

Scholarly activities include presenting at Adult Psychiatry Grand Rounds, and participation in Journal Club presentations and discussions. Residents have opportunities to develop the Scholar role and attain EPAs through Journal Club and Grand Rounds presentations.   

Significant support is available for residents wishing to pursue a research track. Research elective time is available for residents as well as the opportunity to do an MSc in Psychiatry during residency. Residents select research elective(s) in discussion with appropriate supervisor(s), either joining work in progress or generating their own proposals for original work. Postgraduate course work can be completed within the department as the seminars are clustered into formal postgraduate courses. Academic Half Day seminars can be credited as coursework for the Masters program.

Residents prepare a research dossier with the help of the Director of the Resident Research Committee.

Clinical Investigator Program

The Clinician Investigator Program is a RCPSC accredited program where postgraduate medical trainees looking to obtain either their MSc or PhD can begin their careers with a well-rounded research background and connections firmly established in a highly competitive environment.

Evaluation and Feedback

Our program has successfully transitioned to Competence By Design (CBD), a Royal College approach to competency-based medical education. PGY1, 2 and 3 are full CBD cohorts and 4 and 5 are piloting the CBD approach. The main form of evaluation for all years is through Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs), which provides quick, on-the-spot coaching. EPAs are assessed by the Competence Committee to determine the resident's rate of progress. 

Residents are each assigned an Academic Advisor, who helps guide them as they progress through the stages of training. We also have a mentorship program to assist residents in career and personal development. Residents meet with one of the program directors at least twice a year and as needed.

Residents undergo a 360-degree evaluation process twice during their training, which includes self-evaluation, evaluation by peers, patients and allied health professionals. The COPE exam is offered annually to help with self-assessment and exam preparation. 

Resident Committees

Our program prides itself on resident input and representation of residents at various levels of administration. Each year, residents elect who will sit on each committee. Examples of committees with resident representation include: Postgraduate Training Committee, COPE, Alberta Psychiatric Association, Canadian Psychiatric Association, and the following resident-led committees.

Lead Residents
During each academic year there are two Lead Residents, one PGY-5 resident and one PGY-4 resident who divide the duties of this position. The PGY-4 Lead Resident becomes the PGY-5 Lead resident for the next academic year in order to maintain continuity.

Class Representatives
Each class of residents from PGY-1 to PGY-5 will nominate and vote on a representative for the upcoming year, who will sit on the Residency Program Committee. These representatives will attend the monthly RPC meetings and present any issues relevant to their year and/or the resident body to the RPC, and in turn will represent RPC to their peers.

Retreat Coordinator
Each year the resident body holds a one-day retreat. This retreat is an opportunity for the resident body to come together and discuss various important issues such as rotation and preceptor evaluations, program concerns, and resident well-being concerns. The retreat is also an opportunity for residents to appoint or elect various committee representatives, and to nominate, elect or appoint a Lead Resident from the PGY-4 class.

COPE Representative
The position of COPE Representative (Coordinators of Psychiatric Education) is a two-year commitment. During that time, the resident sits on the Residency Program Committee and is expected to attend and report any relevant COPE business. This resident represents this program by attending two national COPE meetings per year, attended by resident reps and Program Directors from across the country. At these meetings, topics relevant to postgraduate training in Psychiatry are discussed. There are often opportunities to be involved in subcommittees to examine particular aspects of training such as safety, evaluation methods, the use of logbooks, etc.

Social Committee
This group of residents is responsible for organizing social events throughout the year including a Welcome Barbeque in the summer, for new PGY-1 residents and family members of all residents. Various other events have been undertaken by the social committee, including a party for the children of residents, informal gatherings around specific events such as post exams, TGIFs and pub nights, etc.

Journal Club Coordinators
These residents schedule and organize the journal clubs, including the selection of topics and presenters. The coordinators are responsible for assembling a schedule for the academic year, and ensuring that each resident in PGY-2 to PGY-5 has an opportunity to make a presentation twice during residency.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the opportunities to be involved within the program?
The UofA psychiatry program offers numerous opportunities to be involved. In terms of leadership, our program includes one resident representative from each PGY year on the Resident Program Committee, along with two co-chiefs from PGY4 and PGY5. There are a plethora of subcommittees on which multiple residents serve. These include, but are not limited to, a wellness group, social committee, cross cultural representatives, learning environment, research, and even a psychiatry movie club. Our program is very open and flexible, so if you come with a unique passion, we are more than happy to support the creation of new initiatives!
What type of mentoring does the University of Alberta Psychiatry Program provide?
All residents entering the psychiatry program at the University of Alberta are matched to an Academic Advisor at the start of residency. The Academic Advisor is a required resource for all residents entering into a Competence by Design (CBD) residency program. Their role is to review evaluation data with residents, to coach residents in developing learning goals and plans, and to present recommendations to the Competence Committee which determines the resident's progress. In addition, the residency program also matches all first year residents to a Career Mentor. This mentor is a resource for residents as they enter the profession and begin making choices toward an eventual career path. Career Mentors can guide residents in choosing research projects, elective rotations, conferences to attend, etc. Career Mentors are selected based upon the characteristics identified by the resident. Finally, as all residents are required to choose and complete a scholarly project during residency, the program matches residents to a research or scholarly project mentor. This mentor serves as a guide for residents in choosing projects that are of interest and relevance to the individual resident.
If I choose U of A Psychiatry, where will my training take place? Throughout my residency, will I have to change locations?
Residents will be rotating through hospitals and clinics in Edmonton during their training. The main hospitals include the University of Alberta Hospital (UAH), Royal Alexandra Hospital (RAH), Misericordia Community Hospital (MCH), Grey Nuns Hospital (GNH) and the Alberta Hospital of Edmonton (AHE). During their Child and Adolescent Psychiatry rotation, they will also rotate through the Stollery Children's Hospital. The clinics will be located within the city limits, depending on where certain preceptors practice. There will also be opportunities for electives to be within province and out-of-province. For convenience, it may be beneficial for prospective residents to live more centrally, as the hospitals and clinics are interspersed throughout the city.
What is Edmonton looking for in a resident?
The University of Alberta psychiatry residency program is seeking applicants who, above all, will become competent, responsible, compassionate clinicians. We value communication skills and teamwork in particular. The program wishes to train psychiatrists who will serve the Edmonton area and/or Northern Alberta. Other attributes that are considered are professionalism, analytical thinking, interest in clinical psychiatry as well as other pursuits related to the practice of medicine such as teaching, research or leadership.
What is living in Edmonton like?
Edmonton is the capital of Alberta, known also as "Festival City". It's one of Canada's youngest and fastest growing urban centers, and also known to be one of Canada's sunniest cities - up to 325 days of bright sunshine each year! Many attractions ensure that you are never bored on your off-days or after a day's work on the wards or in clinic - a few examples include the world-famous West Edmonton Mall, the new Royal Alberta Museum, the Muttart Conservatory, the expansive river valley system, and Edmonton Oilers games. Some common summer activities include dragon-boating, hiking, and eating at the many food trucks throughout the city, while exciting winter activities one might do include skating, snow-shoeing and fat-biking.

Visit the site below for more information and intriguing ideas to get a better sense of how living in Edmonton would be like! Explore Edmonton: Things to do