Psychiatry in Kenya primarily focuses on diagnosing, treating, and preventing mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders through the use of medication and psychotherapy. Unlike psychologists who focus on therapy, psychiatrists prescribe medication to treat a condition.
Psychiatry is the best career for you to delve into as it has many advantages that come with it. Do you want to know how to become a psychiatrist in Kenya today? Well, I’ll give you some pointers that will help you out.
Guidelines to Become a Psychiatrist in Kenya
Here is how you can become a psychiatrist in Kenya:
- Attain a minimum of a B-stand in the KCSE.
- Enroll for a Bachelor of Psychiatry at your institution of choice. Here you will majorly focus on pre-medical education.
- Sit for a Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). Ensure you score the highest marks so that you can be considered during the hiring process.
- Complete a Medical Doctor (MD) program or a Doctor of Osteopathy program. These programs will guide you in determining the type of treatment to be administered to patients with different conditions.
- Apply for a psychiatrist license, which gives you the authority to treat patients in healthcare facilities.
These are the steps to follow in order to become a psychiatrist in Kenya.
In some cases, you may not be eligible to pursue a degree in psychiatry. Do not give up because there is a certificate course in psychiatry, but you will need to progress to a diploma in clinical psychiatry in Kenya, followed by a degree, masters degree, and PhD level.
You might be interested to know that psychiatric nurses in Kenya earn an average of Ksh. 578,000 per month, including all allowances.
Conclusion
Psychiatry is a good course as far as the marketability of courses is concerned. Since it is a medical course, it has a high demand niche, so one is able to get a job easily. Besides, it is a high-paying job that one would wish to have. I hope you have gotten an idea of how to become a psychiatrist in Kenya.
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