Duhok Medical Journal

Background Child mental health and child and adolescent psychiatry is increasinglybecoming an indicator for any modern society to bring up child perspectives preparing forprosperous future. This field was lacking as an own medical speciality in the Middle Eastuntil the establishment of the Department of Child Mental Health at the College of Medicine,University of Duhok in 20 September 2001.Objectives To build up local competence in Child Mental Health, and to introduce Child andAdolescent Psychiatry as a modern subject in the curriculums at the College of Medicine,University of Duhok, in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.Methods The Department of Child Mental Health (CMH) was established at the College ofMedicine, University of Duhok, in collaboration with the Department of Neuroscience, Childand Adolescent Psychiatry at the Uppsala University in Sweden. Education programs aredelivered from the Uppsala University in Sweden to the College of Medicine, University ofDuhok in Iraqi Kurdistan, at three levels; community-based education, undergraduate medicaleducation, and postgraduate education to achieve High Diploma (Master) degree, adjusted tothe local system in Kurdistan.Results The CMH is a unit belonged to the pediatrics at the College of Medicine, and havinglinks to the Directorates of Health, Education and Social Care in Duhok. Lectures in Childand Adolescent Psychiatry are delivered to the fifth year medicine students one week inautumn to be followed by another week of teaching in clinical case discussions in springevery year. The final examination consisting of the means of scores collected during the firsttheory and the second clinical courses compose 20% of the final pediatric examination. Thepostgraduate program consists of two-year education, after one-year pediatric residency, toobtain specialist competence in the subject.Conclusions Transferring up-to-date knowledge on modern subjects from advancedinternational universities to the universities in Iraq is necessary and possible if modernteaching methods are effectively utilized. The CMH is proved to be a good example ofsuccessful collaboration, making the College of Medicine at the University of Duhok as thefirst school of medicine in the Middle East having Child and Adolescent Psychiatry as anobligatory teaching subject.