Perceived barriers to and values of PGY2 psychiatric pharmacy resident research project publication

Introduction: To describe the perceived barriers to and values of postgraduate year 2 (PGY2) psychiatric pharmacy resident research project publication, characterized by PGY2 Psychiatric Residency Program Director (RPDs) responses to an electronic email survey. Methods: This is a prospective, cross-sectional, anonymous survey distributed to PGY2 psychiatric pharmacy RPDs. The contact information for RPDs was obtained from the American Society of Health System Pharmacists (ASHP) directory. An email for a 1-time survey was provided for all RPDs listed in the directory. Results: Surveys were sent to 75 PGY2 psychiatric pharmacy RPDs listed in the ASHP directory, and 36 were completed for a response rate of 48%. The most common barrier to publication identified by RPDs was lack of resident motivation (47.2%). It was unanimously agreed upon that all psychiatrically trained PGY2 pharmacists should have strong written communication skills; however, the most significant disagreement is that all residents should be required to submit their residency projects for publication. Discussion: The most common barriers identified were a lack of resident motivation, a lack of statistical knowledge, and difficulty completing the project in 1 year. RPDs emphasized the importance of strong written communication skills for residents, but did not believe that residency research projects should be required to be submitted for publication.