The Hong Kong College of Psychiatrists (

Traditional Chinese A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays or ...

: 香港精神科醫學院) is a member College of the

Hong Kong Academy of Medicine Hong may refer to: Places * Høng, a town in Denmark *Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and specia ...

(

: 香港醫學專科學院). It oversees the provision of specialist training and continuing medical education in

psychiatry Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psychiatry. Initial psych ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

About

There are differences between a

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

(

: 精神科專科醫生) and a

clinical psychologist Clinical psychology is an integration of social science, theory, and clinical knowledge for the purpose of understanding, preventing, and relieving psychologically based distress or dysfunction and to promote subjective well-being and persona ...

(

: 臨牀心理學家). A

is a

medical doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of

mental disorders A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitti ...

(i.e. behavioural, cognitive and/or emotional disorders), and can thus prescribe medications in treating such disorders - as well as to provide

psychotherapy Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...

and other supportive counselling. A

is not a medical doctor - but a licensed mental health professional (who usually holds a Master's or Doctoral degree in clinical psychology) who specializes in the evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of mental disorders. S/he may provide

psychological evaluation Psychological evaluation is a method to assess an individual's behavior, personality, cognitive abilities, and several other domains. A common reason for a psychological evaluation is to identify psychological factors that may be inhibiting a pers ...

, assessment, testing, and treatment, but may not prescribe medications. The objectives of the Hong Kong College of Psychiatrists are: *to promote the study and advancement of the science and practice of psychiatry and ancillary sciences and branches of medicine; *to further public education therein; *to contribute to the improvement of mental health care for Hong Kong citizens through the provision of specially trained psychiatrists. There are 4 categories of members: Fellow, Member, Inceptor and Affiliate. In May 2004, there were 168 Fellows, 64 Members, 96 Inceptors and 26 Affiliates.

Fellow

A registered medical practitioner who (i) has completed at least 6 years of recognized supervised training, (ii) has held a recognized higher qualification in psychiatry, and (iii) if the qualification in (ii) is obtained after 31 December 1993, has passed the Part III Examination of the College, is eligible to apply for Fellowship. If the applicant is from overseas, a certain number of years of local experience is required. The recognized higher qualification in psychiatry will be decided by the College and be reviewed by the College from time to time.

Member

A registered medical practitioner who (i) has passed the Part II Fellowship Examination of the College or (ii) has held a recognized higher qualification in psychiatry, and who is receiving accredited training in Psychiatry, is eligible to apply for Membership. The recognized higher qualification in psychiatry will be decided by the College and be reviewed by the College from time to time. Currently, the recognized higher qualifications mentioned above are: *Member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, United Kingdom (MRCPsych) *Fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (FRANZCP) *Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Canada (Psychiatry) (FRCPC) *Diploma of the American Board of Psychiatry

Inceptor

A registered medical practitioner receiving accredited training in psychiatry shall apply for Inceptorship in accordance with such regulation and subject to such conditions as the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine may from time to time prescribe.

Affiliate

Registered medical practitioner not satisfying the requirement for Fellowship, Membership and Inceptorship and non-medically qualified allied professionals may apply for registration as Affiliate in accordance with such regulations and subject to such condition as the Council may from time to time prescribe.

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