Literature searching has been revolutionised by the desktop computer. Today it is almost inconceivable to be without the tools to efficiently and comprehensively examine the medical literature. However, as this biomedical literature grows ever more vast, researchers and clinicians need to know which of the many biomedical and psychiatric databases will best cover their particular area of interest. No databases can cover everything. It is necessary to select the most appropriate source of information for the task at hand and for a literature review this will usually entail the use of multiple methods of data collection. In this brief review databases of particular interest to psychiatrists are discussed.

The speciality tutor is recognised but not appointed by the College. He or she may be appointed by the University, the Regional Post graduate Education Committee, or by a local committee, for example, the local Division of Psychiatry. The appointment, however, must have the agreement of colleagues (Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1996).

Psychiatry in Uganda has a fine pedigree. Academic psychiatry was established in the late 1960s when the Makerere University Department of Psychiatry was founded. Academic medicine and psychiatry suffered during the Amin regime but, like the country as a whole, these have begun to rebuild themselves over the past 10 years. Problems still remain including poor facilities, lack of resources, and a need to revise the Mental Treatment Act and standards of treatment. The high prevalence of AIDS and post-traumatic stress disorder place added burdens on Ugandan psychiatry.

Changes in the organisation and delivery of psychiatric services are likely to increase the stigma of mental illness, reduce the role of the psychiatrist, and inhibit recruitment of the best medical students. The value of close integration with the district general hospital and medical school is stressed. The future of psychiatry will be in doubt if this is ignored.

“… the cardinal requirement for the improvement of the mental health services in this country, is … a strengthening of the family doctor in his therapeutic role.” – Michael Shepherd (1966).

Junior psychiatrists in the UK often receive only minimal training in psychodynamic aspects of group processes, especially as applied to the understanding of organisational dynamics. Yet these processes may be an important force operating in clinical teams, in both hospital and community settings.