1. Introduction
mentally ill, psychiatric
DISORDERS
In Germany psychiatric disorders rank among the four most important causes for lost healthy years [The term “stigmatization”, from the Greek word stigma (δτίγμα, “brand”), goes back to the labeling theory put forth by the sociologist Goffman and describes a process through which others assign people or groups to negatively connotated categories [Stigma prevention is thus an important component in all healthcare education (also in post-graduate education and post-licensure training). The National Competency-based Catalogue of Learning Objectives in Undergraduate Medical Education (NKLM, version 2.0) states the necessity of recognizing and combatting stigma in the learning objectives VII.1a-20.2.4, VIII.2-05.2.2 and VIII.2-03.2.6 [This study investigated if supervised contact with mentally ill patients during a one-week clinical course on psychosomatic medicine resulted in a reduction of stigmatization in medical students. The factors listed as having an influence on stigma were also investigated.The individual hypothesis were:
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