Policy, professionalism and psychotherapy; the clinical practice guidelines' dilemma.

Objective: To review a rebuttal to widely published concerns that the Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) devalues the role of long-term psychodynamic psychotherapy as a treatment in mood disorders.

Conclusion: There is a wider context to this debate. The CPG presents the RANZCP with a dilemma about treatments, professionalism and policy; it requires amendment.

How peer review groups support learning and wellbeing in psychiatrists.

Objective: To explore the self-reported value of Peer Review Groups (PRGs) by Australian psychiatrists, focussing on learning and wellbeing.

Methods: A cross-sectional mixed-methods online survey of psychiatrists registered with the NSW Branch Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) who had attended a PRG in the previous 12 months.

Results: Respondents described PRG participation as supportive to their learning and to their professional wellbeing by sharing professional experiences, emotional support for the inherent stresses of practice, the provision of a space for debriefing and the amelioration of professional isolation.

Clinical practice guidelines, psychotherapy and implications for psychiatry.

Objective: The 2020 RANZCP clinical practice guidelines (CPG) for mood disorders, published in January 2021, raise important questions for practice and teaching. The objective of this review is to critically appraise the content of the CPG to examine if it reflects contemporary practice-based evidence.

Conclusion: Our review identifies factual error and notes international criticism.

Psychiatry peer review groups in Australia: a mixed-methods exploration of structure and function.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine Australian psychiatrists' experience of participation in a small group learning format of continuing professional development, known as peer review groups (PRGs), with a particular emphasis on group structure and functions.

Method: An exploratory mixed-methods study comprising a survey (n=77) and semistructured interviews (n=6) with Australian psychiatrists participating in a PRG in the previous 12 months.

Results: Qualitative findings indicate that PRGs address experiential learning through a focus on both breadth and specificity of work, as well as participants' experiences.

Informed consent and childhood gender dysphoria: emerging complexities in diagnosis and treatment.

Objective: To explore some of the emerging complexities in the management of childhood gender dysphoria.

Conclusion: The authors raise questions about the gender-affirmation approach and highlight concerns about informed consent and research ethics.

Where do Peer Review Groups fit in the international Continuing Professional Development literature?

Objectives: To describe what is reported in the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) literature on small group learning formats in medicine, including the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) CPD Peer Review Groups (PRGs).

Method: A literature review of international peer-reviewed publications in relation to the use of small group learning formats for CPD in medicine.

Results: Small groups are commonly used as a learning format in medical CPD, primarily in general practice, but are little researched.