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September 2010

Emotional Wellbeing in Schools (Afternoon Meeting)

High levels of anxiety and depression are present in schools and have significant long-term, impacts on the individual and their education. Various initiatives have been introduced into schools to address this issue. For example, the introduction of direct links to educational psychology services aims to provide locally delivered support and help for those with higher levels of clinical distress.

A wide degree of low levels of distress continues however, and to address this, training in a wider range of mental health topics has been introduced into the curriculum within the Personal Health and Social Education (PHSE) classes. To date, few of these courses/classes have utilised a specific mental health delivery model and are delivered inconsistently. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) approaches have particular promise as a support for people facing anxiety and low mood. A series of CBT-based classes that can be run by teachers or others within PHSE and other settings has been developed. This will evolve into a larger programme.

In the presentation, the work to date will be described and it will include key learning points. Attendees will also have a chance to participate in a sub-component of one of the classes and consider issues of evaluation and how to support delivery. Cost: ACAMH Member: £15.00; Non-Member: £25.00

Contact: Email Martin Pratt Tel: +44 (020) 7403 7458 Website

Economic Evaluation

The two day course aims to provide students with an understanding of economic evaluation and its relevance to mental health research. The principle elements of an economic evolution will be introduced including the identification, measurement and valuation of costs, measurement of outcomes and methods of cost-effectiveness analysis. A range of examples from existing studies conducted by the course tutors will then be used to illustrate economic evaluation in practice.

Contact: Website: http://www.hsr.iop.kcl.ac.uk/ Email the summer school administrator: imh@kcl.ac.uk

Learning to use the Structured Assessment of Protective Factors for violence risk (SAPROF)

The SAPROF has recently been developed as an instrument for the structured assessment of protective factors for violence risk. Following the SPJ model, the SAPROF was designed as a positive addition to other SPJ risk assessment tools, such as the HCR-20, creating a more balanced assessment of risk for future (sexual) violence. The SAPROF aims to contribute to an increasingly accurate and well-rounded assessment of risk for future violent behaviour. Moreover, the dynamic positive approach of protective factors aims to create new opportunities for effective and achievable treatment interventions.

The dynamic factors of the SAPROF can be helpful in formulating treatment goals, evaluating treatment progress and stimulating positive risk communication. Previous retrospective research results with the SAPROF in Dutch samples of violent and sexually violent offenders showed good interrater reliability and good predictive validity for non-recidivism. Moreover, SAPROF scores showed significant improvements during treatment.

This workshop will focus on the additional value of protective factors for clinical practice. Participants will be introduced to the SAPROF and will be trained in using the SAPROF in combination with the HCR-20 or related instruments. Advantages for risk assessment and risk management will be discussed and new research results with the SAPROF will be presented.

Contact: For further details visit the website. Email: Forensic.Teachingunit@kcl.ac.uk

Weathering the Storms: Psychiatry in Difficult Times

This one day event will look at a range of clinical and non clinical challenges that general adult psychiatrists are likely to face in the current climate. The topics covered range from working in the aftermath of natural calamities to working in a financially cold environment. The guest speakers are Dr Raj Persaud, Dr Peter Hughes and Professor Swaran Singh.

The attendees will also have the option of attending two out of the four workshops. The workshops are based on the recent clinical challenges and include master classes on adult ADHD and ASD along with a range of other topics.

Fees(including lunch): Consultants: £50; Trainees & Specialty Doctors: £30

Contact: Ms Carol Bennett, Post Graduate Medical Education Administrator, Birminghan & Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust Email: carol.bennett@bsmhft.nhs.uk

Problem-Solving Therapy (PST) for depression: an integrative CBT approach

PST is based on research demonstrating that effective problem-solving ability moderates the damaging effects of stressful problems, and facilitates positive treatment goals. This brief solution focus therapy technique has been shown to be effective both as a stand-alone intervention, and as part of a larger care programme, and focuses on what the client wants to achieve in the future, rather than the events of the past. PST integrates principles of change that include awareness and mindful acceptance of emotions as important sources of information, cognitive change strategies, clarification of values and goals, and behavioral skill acquisition. This workshop will teach delegates to conduct PST and adapt is to various populations.

Contact: Email: cwi@reading.ac.uk Website

Forensic Mental Health and Women

This conference chaired by Professor Graham Towl of Durham University (formerly chief psychologist at the Ministry of Justice) will examine whether there have been effective changes and progress in delivering women’s forensic health services since the recommendations of the Corston Report of 2007.

An update on progress post-Corston will be followed by an exploration of how the third sector will play a key role in delivering effective services to women who are forensic mental health service users. The third sector will be represented at the conference to speak about how they see their role developing in providing care and recovery services. A discussion will also explore what changes need to happen to deliver care and recovery services against a background of likely budgetary constraints.

Specialised sessions will evaluate how early intervention and prevention strategies can prevent reoffending among the young female population. The approach to recovery in secure settings will be explored including the design and implementation of care. And a service user will give their perspective on current care and recovery practice.

A panel discussion about the changes needed to deliver effective care and recovery against budgetary constraints will provide a forum for debate. Workshops will provide the opportunity to gain some practical pointers on offender management; self-harm management and reduction; recovery for long-term service users.

Finally, the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health will present their evidence and research in the forensic mental health field. Book your place by 28 July and SAVE £50.
Contact: Website Email: info@pavpub.com

Reducing Coercive Interventions in Mental Health Care

The one day course will cover the following. Conceptual and clinical accounts of ’treatment pressures’, ethical frameworks for justifying coercive interventions, analysis of’capacity’ and ’best interests’, legal framework for coercive interventions, reducing the need for compulsion through enhanced service user involvement in their care, case discussions. Course fee £140.00. Speakers include Jill Craigie, Claire Henderson, Gareth Owen, Genevra Richardson and George Szmukler.

Contact: Website: http://www.hsr.iop.kcl.ac.uk/ Email the summer school administrator: imh@kcl.ac.uk

PSP Symposium

National day conference on Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) and Cortico Basal Degeneration (CBD), organised by The PSP Association. Dr Boyd Ghosh, University of Cambridge, will be speaking on behaviour and cognition aspects, (including depression) an area of growing interest in these neuro conditions. Other sessions will include research, communication, carer support and palliative care.

Contact: For further information please visit the website. Tel: 01327 322410 Email deborah.wheeler@pspeur.org

Improving Outcomes in Depressive Illness

Depressive Illness has a marked effect on the individual and their life as well as the wider society. We know from research that it is often incompletely treated, leaving people with a reduced quality of life and perpetuating the impact on those around them. This is all despite a wide range of evidence based interventions being available to health professionals at all levels. This conference is designed to provide up-to-date guidance on the effective management of depressive illness, delivered by experts in their fields. It will reflect clinical practice and seek to bring findings from research into the clinical domain. The management of depressive illness at all levels of severity will be addressed.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

HCR-20 Violence Risk Assessment Scheme

Date: 16 - 17 September  2010

Venue: The Met Hotel, Leeds

The HCR-20 is a practical tool for the clinical assessment of risk of violence in the mentally disordered. Its use is becoming increasingly widespread in forensic and general adult psychiatric services and provides empirically-based structured clinical guidance by combining information about historical risk factors that have a strong evidence base with dynamic, variable clinical risk factors and clinical judgments. The aim of this workshop is for you to become familiar with the principles underpinning risk assessment in the mentally disordered, competent in the use of the HCR-20 instrument and capable of formulating a comprehensive, detailed risk assessment and risk management plan for your patients.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Learning to use the START

This workshop will provide training in the Short-Term Assessment of Risk and Treatability (START: Webster, Martin, Brink, Nicholls, & Middleton), a structured professional clinical guide for the dynamic assessment of seven risk domains (violence, suicide, self-harm, victimization, substance use, unauthorised leave, and self-neglect). The START is intended for use alongside other structured risk assessment devices such as the HCR-20. The START provides a distinct opportunity to involve patient strengths as well as vulnerabilities in the development of risk management plans. The workshop will focus on how START can inform decision-making when used with patients in correctional, civil and forensic mental health settings. assessment and risk management will be discussed and new research results with the SAPROF will be presented.

Contact: For further details visit the website. Email: Forensic.Teachingunit@kcl.ac.uk

Refocus on Recovery 2010

Presenting the best international recovery research, this conference will feature international keynote speakers, pre-conference master classes and showcase national studies about changing practice.

Contact: Website: http://www.researchintorecovery.com/

Moving Forward with CPD – 10 Years On

We are delighted to welcome you to this special evening seminar celebrating ten years of continuing professional development provision by the Andrew Sims Centre. This evening seminar will examine the development of CPD, how it will promote and support changes in practice, career development and the process of revalidation, for all psychiatrists including consultants, specialty doctors and trainees.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Essentials: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Date: 22 September  2010

Venue: The Met Hotel, Leeds

Presented by Dr Hiroko Akagi, Consultant in Liaison Psychiatry, Leeds and West Yorkshire CFS/ME Service, Leeds Partnerships NHS Foundation Trust. Mental health professionals often see patients who have had chronic fatigue symptoms, and distinction between those due to mental health issues and CFS/ME can be difficult. This session will cover the diagnosis, assessment, and management of CFS/ME. It will also discuss the relevance of exploring illness models and beliefs to facilitate a shared understanding and management of the condition, and a patient focussed approach to treatment planning. Clinical scenarios will be used to illustrate common difficulties and dilemmas encountered.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

3rd Evening Seminar

Date: 24 September  2010

Venue: Royal Society of Medicine, 1, Wimpole Street, W1G 0AE

Dr. Robert Neborsky will present theory and practice of ISTDP in personality pathology, followed by discussion. Suitable for registered clinicians in psychotherapy, psychology, psychiatry and allied fields. £35per person; £20 ISTDP-UK members. Book before 22 September 2010.

Contact: Email Sharon Lewis Tel: 01494580018

Implementing Effective Supervision of Social Workers

Date: 29 September  2010

Venue: Royal Society of Medicine, 1, Wimpole Street, W1G 0AE

This conference will explore many of the key areas around implementing and maintaining a consistent, well-delivered programme of supervision. The timetable for the new standards of supervision and what will be expected will be outlined. The role and responsibilities of employers will be explored in detail, with an emphasis on reviewing and updating current policies.

Contact: Email: info@pavpub.com Tel: 08448805061 Website

Recent Advances in the Management of Eating Disorders

The speciality of eating disorders is rapidly developing and the evidence base for treatments is expanding, which provides professionals with a significant challenge in order to remain up-to-date with progress in the field. A multitude of different treatment approaches can be offered, and this conference will explore the evidence behind some of the more widely used approaches and consider where services could develop in the future. This conference is specifically designed for those with an interest in, or specialising in the management of eating disorders and is intended to share experience and evidence of recent developments from a national perspective and across a variety of treatment modalities. This event is supported by beat, Yorkshire Centre for Eating Disorders, Eating Disorders Service - St George's University of London, Eating Disorders Unit - South London & Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and Loughborough University Centre for Research into Eating Disorders / Leicestershire Partnerships NHS Trust / University of Leicester.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

RCP Educational Supervisor Accreditation

Educational Supervisors are responsible for the overall supervision and management of a trainee’s educational progress. The RCP has developed a new training and accreditation process which will give formal recognition to doctors who are Educational Supervisors, and which meets the GMC's requirements as set out in their ‘Standards for Trainers’.

To achieve the award of ‘RCP Educational Supervisor’, delegates will attend a 2-day workshop, which covers key aspects of educational supervision, and then submit an assignment which is based on their own supervisory practice. This accreditation is suitable for doctors who are supervising trainees of any grade and specialty.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Tel: 020 3075 1562/1563

October 2010

Essentials: Voice Hearing – The Experience and Evidence Base

Presented by Dr Anjula Gupta, Chartered Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Leeds Partnerships NHS Foundation Trust and Eleanor Longden, PhD researcher, University of Leeds. This seminar will develop your skills and confidence in providing evidence based collaborative interventions with voice hearers and will also provide an overview of the most recent theoretical and research developments. This will enable you to help support voice hearers to overcome distress and work towards recovery.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Robert Schumann – The Man, the Mind, the Music

The Musical Brain, now a registered charity, which aims to bring together artists, scientists, teachers, therapists and the public to examine the effects of music and other art forms upon the human mind, brain and body, is presenting this two-day event at one of London’s leading concert venues. The student rate is £50 for two days or £30 for one day. The full rate is £175 for two days or £90 for one day.
Contact: For more information please contact Hilary Bartlett, Secretary of the Musical Brain Tel: 0208 404 1327 Website

3rd International Forum on Buddhism and Medicine

• Saturday 2 October: Day one will give a comprehensive presentation of the most recent scientific research on meditation, and an overview of some of the ways in which meditation is being applied in medical and therapeutic settings. Evening: Conference Dinner.
• Sunday 3 October: Day two will take a closer look at some of the different meditation and mindfulness techniques, and how they can be used in areas such as pain management, healing, stress reduction and the treatment of depression or addiction. There will be an opportunity for questions and discussion, as well as the chance to experience first-hand some of these meditation methods.

Beating Eating Disorders - Children & Adolescents

A beat conference supported by the Royal College of Nursing Eating Disorders Special Interest Group, for professionals working with children and young people with eating disorders.

Who should attend: Nurses, psychiatrists, GPs, clinical psychologists, social workers, dietitians, service managers, RMNs, counsellors, school nurses and all those who want to update their knowledge of eating disorders in children and adolescents.

The programme will include presentations and practical workshops on:

• Keynote presentation – ‘A partnership approach to anorexia nervosa’ – Dr Tony Jaffa
• Multi family group therapy
• Boys with eating disorders
• Treatment of very young patients
• Assessment
• A first-hand experience of eating disorders by a beat Young Ambassador
• Networking oppportunities

Full programme to be announced shortly. 

Self-Harm and Borderline Personality Disorder

There are over 150,000 attendances to accident and emergency departments each year for self-harm; it is one of the top five causes of acute medical admission. The UK has the highest rate of self-harm in Europe; this rate continues to increase. One half of those who die by suicide each year will have self-harmed at some time in the past. Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is an increasingly prevalent, yet highly controversial diagnosis. It is defined in DSM-IV as a prolonged disturbance of personality function, characterised by depth and variability of moods. Suicidal or self-harming behaviour is one of the core diagnostic criteria in DSM, leading to a high rate of diagnosis in those who self-harm. Service user activists and critical-thinking mental health practitioners have questioned the diagnosis being made on the basis of self-injury alone. Furthermore, there is significant concern that the diagnosis of BPD stigmatizes people, usually women, and can support pejorative and discriminatory practices.

12 Induction

Mastering Behavioural Activation for Depression

BA sees avoidance behaviours, such as inactivity and rumination, as the key maintaining factors underlying depression, and treatment aims to combat clients’ use of such maladaptive behaviours. Developers of BA have identified ten guiding principles that have been observed in successful treatment of depressed adults, and these guiding principles can apply to many psychological problems. This workshop will cover these 10 guiding principles, and show how the application of these core principles will be useful to therapists from other theoretical orientations. Day 2 is intended to be an interactive day with discussion of cases, and audience. Presented by Professor Christopher Martell.

Contact: Email: cwi@reading.ac.uk Website

12 Refresher

Faculty of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 2010 Annual Meeting

The theme of this event is Tracking Trajectories - Influences on Developmental Pathways from Infancy to Whatever! The issues reflected in the vista from Child2010 - alienation, persecution, disenfranchisement, subjugation of dissent - will be a reminder of the issues of development “from infancy to whatever!”. It will be the task of Child2010 to explore the intertwining biopsychosocial influences on that development through keynote addresses, workshops, themed symposia, papers and poster sessions. In these early stages of planning we are delighted that Daniel Hughes, a leading figure in attachment trauma and relationship therapy, and Jerome Holmes, whose main expertise is in attachment based psychotherapy, have accepted our invitation to be keynote speakers.

Contact: Website: http://www.fcconventions.com.au/child2010/ Tel: +61 8 8363 1307 Email: child2010@fcconventions.com.au

A Mental Health Law Update

This one-day course will provide an update on statutory changes as well as significant case law for practicing mental health professionals. It is recommended for all who wish to update their knowledge of mental health law. This course is accredited by the East Midlands and Yorkshire Section 12 Approval Panel as a refresher course for Section 12 Approved doctors requiring re-approval and is also designed to deliver the regulatory requirement for annual further relevant training essential for DoLS Mental Health Assessors.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy NOW

Meeting the challenge of complexity together'
A one day conference for psychodynamic and psychoanalytic colleagues, exploring how psychoanalytic thinking can be applied to the complex issues of the contemporary world. Over 30 national & international speakers. Registration fee £55 to £115, includes lunch and awards reception.

Contact: British Psychoanalytic Council Tel: 020 7267 3626, or email:  mail@psychoanalytic-council.org
Download programme

Strengthened Medical Appraisal & Revalidation

This one-day workshop is designed specifically to introduce appraisees and appraisers to Strengthened Medical Appraisal as part of Revalidation. The workshop will cover the following topics:

• The nature and purpose of consultant appraisal
• Strengthened medical appraisal and revalidation
• Good Medical Practice Framework for appraisal
• The changing role of appraisal and how this links directly to Revalidation
• Specialty-specific frameworks for revalidation
• The supporting information needed for appraisal
• The skills required by appraisers and the structure of the appraisal meeting
• The appraisal meeting and the Personal Development Plan
• Delegates will also have the opportunity to practise appraisal skills and to analyse ways of tackling concerns over doctors in difficulty.
  

Facilitators for this one-day workshop will be a combination of skilled medical educationalists and doctors who have direct involvement in the Revalidation Pathfinder pilots.

Audience: Consultants from all specialties (Surgeon, GP, Anaesthetist, Psychiatrist etc)

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Tel: 020 3075 1563/1562

Common Psychological and Behavioural Disorders in Childhood, Adolescence and Early Adulthood

Approved Clinicians Induction Course

Section Of Forensic Psychiatry International Conference 2010

The theme for the conference - Justice at Risk: Factitious Disorders, Malingering and the Inherent Risks of Risk Evaluation for Courts - is to take risk assessment one step further than the risks presented by the patient, yet also to step back and re-evaluate the bases on which forensic opinions are formed. This conference will provide a unique opportunity to compare approaches and findings from research and practice. Call for papers.

Contact: The Conference Organiser Tel:(+61) (03) 9349 2220 Email: info@conorg.com.au

Approved Clinicians Refresher Course

The evidence base for the management of patients with Personality Disorder is the most disparate and at time conflicting, and this conference aims to provide an overview of some of the theories and practical developments which have evolved within this field over recent years. Alpha Hospital Sheffield’s fourth annual conference will focus on Personality Disorder. It wil feature the following leading national and international academics and medico-legal experts in the Personality Disorder Field;

• Professor John Livesley, Editor Emeritus, Journal of Personality Disorders British Columbia
• Professor Nigel Eastman, Professor in Law and Ethics in Psychiatry, St George’s University London
• Ashley Irons, Mental Health Partner, Capsticks
• Professor Conor Duggan, Editor, Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology
  

There will be provision for questions and answers and delegate discussion. Delegate rates are as follows;

• £99.00 Early Booking Rate for all places booked before 31 August 2010
• £125.00 Standard Rate
• £85.00 Students/Voluntary Organisations
  

Please note that this conference is not for profit and all proceeds will go to a charity as nominated by the patients at Alpha Hospital Sheffield.

Eminent psychoanalyst Ronald Britton examines the position of psychoanalysis on a conceptual axis which puts physical and mental at opposite ends of a continuum - one which as yet does not meet in the middle. Currently the neurosciences are approaching from one end of this continuum and the mental sciences from the other.

In discussion with Peter Hobson, Professor of Developmental Psychopathology at University College London, Dr Britton will explore the idea that psychoanalysis operates in the uncharted middle ground, studying mental life in much the same way as Darwin studied natural history before it was able to join up with the new science of the biology laboratory.

Time: 6.00pm (drinks reception at 8.00pm) Price: £15/£12 including wine

Contact: For more details visit the website

• Professor Stephen G. Post, USA
• Professor Henry Brodaty, AU
• Professor Sandrine Andrieu, FR
• Professor Emma Reynish, UK
  

The Cognitive Neuroscience of Adolescence: brain development, cognition, mental health

Date: 20 October 2010

The presenters, both experts in their fields, will provide a comprehensive background and valuable up-to-date developments showing the importance of adolescence in terms of profound physical and psychosocial change.

Structural neuroimaging studies from the last decade have shown that the brain continues to develop substantially during adolescence – linear increases in white matter volume occur across the brain, and grey matter density changes in a non-linear and region-specific manner. The prefrontal cortex and other brain regions important for 'higher' cognitive functions, such as social cognition and executive control, develop late. These may contribute to aspects of typically adolescent behaviour, for example emerging social competence and heightened risk-taking. Knowledge of adolescent brain development may contribute to understanding the increased risk for certain mental health issues during this period of life, for example schizophrenia, addiction and effective disorders.

Contact: Martin Pratt, The Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (ACAMH) Email: martin.pratt@acamh.org.uk Tel: 020 7403 7458 Fax: 020 7403 7081 Website

Integrative Medicine Convention

Date: 20 - 21 October 2010

An Internation meeting of experts in Medicine fron "Conventional" Medicine and "alternative" Medicine.
A unique meeting of east and west in the Middle East.

Contact: Website

Assessing Fitness to Plead and Fitness to Be Interviewed

Psychiatrists are increasingly being asked to comment on fitness to be interviewed and fitness to plead. The outcomes and accuracy of these assessments greatly impact on the Criminal Justice process and clinicians may be asked to justify their findings in court. The aim of this seminar is to enable fair, robust and legal procedures on behalf of mentally disordered detainees and allow you to give reliable evidence in court.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Annual East of England Psychiatry SpR conference, 2010

Date: 22 October 2010

The higher trainees in the East of England organise this annual conference with a different theme every year. This year the conference will be called The Past, the Present and the Future-Perfect of Psychiatry.

The discussion will be about how our understanding of illnesses, psychopathology and treatments has changed over time and continues to develop into the future. The speakers are reknowned for their academic experience and excellence:

• Professor Peter Jones
• Professor Tim Thornton
• Profesor German E Berrios, Dr Moncreiff
• Dr Perez
• Dr McGilchrist.

The fee for the conference is £50 before the 2nd of October and £60 thereafter.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email Vivek.Agarwal@nhs.net

Anxiety and Depression 2010: diagnosis, management and treatment in the child and adolescent

Date: 25 - 26 October 2010

Anxiety and Depression 2010 will assemble expert speakers from across the UK for two exciting days packed with discussion and debate. The conference will be indispensable for practitioners working across all areas of child and adolescent mental health as well as those looking to specialise.

Contact: Tel: 0207 501 6761 Fax: 0207 978 8319 Website

Building a secure future for people with acquired brain injury

Date: 26 October 2010

:People with acquired brain injury (ABI) face many hurdles in their pathway to rehabilitation and recovery. The role of those delivering social and health care to this group should be focused on helping survivors of ABI build a secure future. A cornerstone of this process is to deliver personalised services to each individual, through the routes of finance, housing and care provision. This conference will explore how these needs are being delivered.

Contact: Visit the website. Call 0844 880 5061 Email info@pavpub.com

Professor Paul Mullen - National Whole Day Conference

Date: 27 October 2010

For the General Adult clinician in particular, presentations including Persistent Complainants, Stalkers and Attackers of Public Figures or Sadists, are likely to be encountered infrequently in one’s clinical practice. However, they are of considerable clinical and societal relevance and impact. Professor Mullen has taken a long interest in such conditions. The up-coming conference during this year’s October mid-term break in Cornwall is an opportunity to listen to a series of topics considered and presented by an experienced clinician and scientist who has dedicated his professional life to understanding these and other aspects of human behaviour. We would like to draw your attention to this opportunity to both listen to and talk with Paul whilst sampling Cornish hospitality and its geographical splendour. Delegate fee is £250

Contact: Jackie Pountney Tel: 07826 873726 Email: jackie.pountney@cft.cornwall.nhs.uk Website

14th Pacific Rim College of Psychiatrists Scientific Meeting

Date: 28 – 30 October 2010

Venue: Brisbane Convention Centre, Australia

Advancing together in Psychiatric Treatment, Research and Education

This will be the major international meeting of psychiatrists in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region in 2010 with over 150 presenters from 12 countries.   The conference is endorsed by the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists and the World Psychiatric Association. The meeting brings together leading mental health practitioners in the fields of clinical work (psychiatrists, general practitioners, mental health nurses, and psychologists), academic psychiatry, and public and private mental health services from the west coasts of North America and South America to East Asia and South-East Asia and Oceania.

Visit the conference website for more information

Working with People who Self Harm

Date: 28 October 2010

Venue: Maudsley Hospital, London

Self-harm is a complex issue which is frequently misunderstood, often being viewed as attempted suicide or as a means of gaining attention, but for many it is a means of coping with internal distress.

This one day course is designed to provide workers from all disciplines with an introduction to understanding self-harm and the opportunity to explore the dynamics and clinical dilemmas involved in this difficult area of work. The training aims to be informative, challenging, and supportive and to provide a forum for individuals to share experiences of working with this client group. By the end of the course participants will be able to:

• Recognise what constitutes self-harm
• Understand the reasons and functions that lie behind an individual harming themselves
• Be able to understand the complex association and differences between self-harm and suicide
• Be aware of the NICE guidelines
• Recognise the associated dilemmas of working with self-harm
• Consider how these dilemmas can be addressed
• Be aware of what support needs to be in place for workers to be enabled in their task with individuals who self-harm
  

This one-day course is run by Jane Bunclark, Clinical Service Lead for the National Self-Harm Service, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust.The cost of this one day course is £150 per person

Contact: To book please email slamlearningsolutions@slam.nhs.uk or call 020 3228 3177. For further information please visit our website.

November 2010

Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Andrology from conception to convalescence...

Date: 2 November 2010

Venue: The Royal Society of Medicine 1 Wimpole Street, London, W1G 0AE

This one day conference aims to educate attendees, particularly those in training, about the need to understand the wide remit of mind-body interactions in the presentation and management of current disease conditions. Attendees will learn when a psychosomatic approach is useful as the sole method and where it should be combined with other treatments to improve outcomes. Familiarity will aid clinical application and facilitate the learning of relevant skills at future courses.

Contact: For more information please visit the website.

Evidence Based Practice for Women in Secure Settings - Developments in Psychosocial Treatment

Date: 3 November 2010

Venue: St Andrew's Healthcare, Northampton

Gender sensitive care requires careful planning to ensure national standards are met; to ensure treatment integrity and to be cost effective. However, research on treatment effectiveness for women in secure settings is sparse.

This half day conference focuses on national and local initiatives that impact on the treatment of women in secure settings and on how to ensure quality in service delivery.

The event will benefit those professionals commissioning, referring to, developing or working within women’s secure services who seek to ensure the most cost effective, quality-driven, evidence-based, use of healthcare resources.

Contact: For more information please visit the website.

Approved Clinician Course

The 2007 Mental Health Act has introduced the need for specific training to be delivered to those professionals, derived from both medical and other professional bodies, who will assume the role of an Approved Clinician. This two-day course, approved by NHS Yorkshire and the Humber, is designed to deliver the necessary training to those who already have the required competencies, and wish to take up the role of Approved Clinician.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Learning to use the HCR-20

The aim of this course, organised by the Institute of Psychiatry, is to assist practitioners working in civil mental health, forensic mental health and criminal justice settings to acquire skills in the assessment of risk for future violence in mentally disordered offenders. Features and Learning Outcomes include:

• Recent developments in research on psychopath and violence risk assessment
• Learning to apply the HCR-20 with confidence
• Individual case exercises
• Introduction to recently evolved decision support guides
• How to evaluate and implement risk assessment procedures
• Recommendations on good practice in risk assessment, risk formulation, risk management planning and evaluation and report-writing
• Post Workshop Follow up and consultation.

Contact: For further information please visit the website or contact Alessandra Scotti Tel: 020 7848 0694

3rd Practical Cognition Course

A course for consultants and trainees who want to develop their practical expertise in cognitive assessment and relate this to clinically relevant neuroscience. Organised by neurologists Tim Griffiths (Newcastle University) and Chris Butler (University of Oxford), hosted by the Institute of Neuroscience and sponsored by the Guarantors of Brain.

This year’s programme will cover disorders of memory, frontal lobe function and cognitive impairment associated with cerebellar dysfunction. Our guest speakers this year are Joern Diedrichson (UCL), Rhys Davies (Liverpool), Narinder Kapur (Cambridge), Tom Kelly (Newcastle) and Andrew Larner (Liverpool). For more information and registration visit the website.

Contact: Laura Batty, External Liaison Coordinator, Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University Tel: 0191 222 8320

Functional Family Therapy

Professor Sexton was heavily involved with the development of the FFT clinical model and its national and international dissemination. He is one of the nation’s leading researchers in the transportation of evidence-based practices into community settings. His research interests include family psychology, family-based interventions for at-risk youth, functional family therapy, and outcome and process research in evidence-based psychological intervention programs. His interest in family psychology and psychotherapy research have resulted in over 40 journal articles, 25 book chapters, and 4 books, including his most recent – and the first book to be published on FFT in over thirty years – Functional Family Therapy in Clinical Practice (2010), as well as his very popular Handbook of Family Therapy, a major reference in the field. As a member of the Division 43 Task Force for Evidence-Based Practices, he is the senior author of the Recommendations for evidence-based practices in Family Psychology. He has presented more than 300 workshops on Functional Family Therapy and consulted with systems of care helping to integrate evidence-based practices into clinical settings both nationally and internationally.

Contact: For more information please visit the website.

The 6th National Conference on Medicine for Old Age Psychiatrists

The 6th National Conference on Medicine for Old Age Psychiatrists will once again bring together a number of the UKs leading experts in their various fields to discuss and debate the key clinical issues old age psychiatrists face in their daily work.
Topics will include: Parkinson's Disease, Cardiology, Dementia as well as many other areas vital to old age psychiatrists. The fee for the two days will once again remain at £499 and the conference will have 12 CPD points accreditation.

Contact: For further details or to book your place, contact Expotel Events on 0845 054 8422 or visit the website

Rethinking Psycho-Social Interventions in South Asia

Objectives: This 3 day intensive course is aimed at providing an understanding of the conceptual theoretical and practical clinical challenges in applying existing psychological and social theory to psychosocial interventions within the sub-continent, and to deliberate alternative solutions.

Target audience: The course will benefit: Psychiatrists, Clinical Psychologists, Psychiatric Social Workers, Occupational Therapists, Medical Anthropologists, and Clinical Practitioners in Mental Health from the NGO, Public and Private Health sectors. Participants will be expected to have a sound basic knowledge of social sciences and its relationship to mental health in South Asia.

Speakers: Clinical Medical Anthropologists from University College London: Dr Sushrut Jadhav (Course Director), Dr Jane Derges, Dr David Goldberg, Mr Sumeet Jain & Professor Roland Littlewood.

Fees: 275 GBP (excluding travel and accomodation)

Contact: Course director, Dr Sushrut Jadhav Email: s.jadhav@ucl.ac.uk Website: http://www.balm.in/

Psychosocial Treatments for Substance Misuse

In this workshop, Dr. Carroll will use the Stage Model of Therapy development as a structure for describing the development of several evidence-based therapies in the addictions, their defining characteristics and current level of empirical support, and strategies for therapist training and dissemination.

Contact: Email: cwi@reading.ac.uk Website

Implementing NICE Guidelines for Psychosis

Keynote speakers:

• Professor David Kingdon, University of Southampton
• Dr Michael Phelan, West London Mental Health NHS Trust
• Professor Geoff Shepherd, Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health NHS Trust & IOP
• Marion Walker Chief Pharmacist, BHFT
  

Master Class Workshops

• Implementing Psychological Interventions
• Promoting Physical Health and Well-Being
• Implementing Recovery

Contact: Places are limited please apply for a registration form to jane.vango@berkshire.nhs.uk

People not Boxes - The Challenge of Integrating Health & Safety Compliance in Mental Healthcare

Mental healthcare services face significant challenges in providing safe environments and working practices - from legislative health
and safety requirements, to the expanding elements of service registration/licensing and the service users we cater for. In contrast to
most other workplace environments, it is the very process of looking after our service users that presents the varied and challenging aspects of compliance. The essence of this obstacle to mental healthcare services is to present best practice over conformity.

Set against the complexities of funding and budget pressures and the potential legislative change that will present many cost vs benefit decisions, it will become increasingly difficult to present effective proposals to maintain and improve health and safety standards to management and board members.

The more recent challenges of corporate manslaughter and greater involvement of the HSE in healthcare investigations present new and greater pressure to ensure the basics are
carried out and that organisations learn, with the improving of incident reporting being a key aspect in dealing with “hidden” health and safety problems.

Aimed at healthcare health and safety professionals, solicitors and healthcare management, conference delegates will hear
from industry experts on key aspects of health and safety within healthcare, and be provided with usable knowledge and practice to take back to their workplace.

St Andrew’s Healthcare is proud to host this leading and timely national conference and welcomes its prominent external speakers.

Contact: Go to the website for full programme and booking form. Alternatively call Lorraine Stone on 01604 616704 or email lstone@standrew.co.uk for more information.

Attachment: From Theory to Creative Therapeutic Solutions

This conference aims to help develop an understanding of attachment theory as well as exploring ways in which creative therapies can be used to work with mother and child dyads where children are presenting with attachment difficulties.

Contact: Karyn Ambridge at the ACAMH Conference Dept, Phone: +44 (0)20 7403 7458 Fax: +44 (0)20 7403 7081 Email

Revalidation – The Essentials

Presented by: Dr Douglas Fraser, Medical Director, Leeds Partnerships NHS Foundation Trust, and; Robert Jackson, Director of Professional Standards, Royal College of Psychiatrists. The need for doctors to be involved in an ongoing process of revalidation has long been accepted. Some of the details are clear, but there are still significant uncertainties. However, it is likely that appraisals already undertaken will, for some, form part of their revalidation portfolio. This half-day seminar will outline the current situation and is essential for those who feel left behind in the developments.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Attachment; From Theory to Creative Therapeutic Solutions

Now almost 70 years since Bowlby first hit the headlines with his WHO monograph based on his observations of children raised in institutions, it is inspiring and rewarding to see how far the concept of attachment and our understanding of its place and impact in terms of childhood, later adulthood and relationships have developed during the intervening period.

The programme explores the theory linked with attachment and provides a summary of ways in which creative therapeutic interventions can be used to work with mother and child dyads where children are presenting with attachment difficulties. The arts focus introduces a welcome balance to current clinical work and promotes an inclusive, positive and innovative approach to successful management of this condition.

ACAMH Member GBP60.00 ACAMH Non-Member GBP70.00

Contact: Karyn Ambridge, ACAMH Conference Dept, 39-41 Union Street, London SE1 1SD
Phone: +44 (0)20 7403 7458 Fax: +44 (0)20 7403 7081 Email: karyn.ambridge@acamh.org.uk

Working With Adults Who Were Sexually Abused As Children

Date: 15 - 16 November 2010

Venue: The Village Hotel, Leeds

Presented by Annette Morris, Accredited EMDR Practitioner, BACP Accredited Psychotherapist and Senior Counsellor / Psychotherapist at South West Yorkshire NHS Mental Health Trust. A high proportion of women and men attending adult mental health services have been sexually abused in childhood. Sexual abuse is often not recognised, leading to multiple diagnoses and treatment of presenting symptoms without resolving the underlying distress. With so many people attending the mental health services with a history of sexual abuse it is important to be able to recognise the possibility of early abuse, to facilitate disclosures and to find the most appropriate treatment approach. This two day small group workshop is designed to increase knowledge of child sexual abuse and its effects; and to increase skills in managing and working in a psychological way with adults who have been abused as children.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Addiction: The Case for Recovery in the Changing World

Date: 17 November 2010

Venue: Congress Centre, London

Leaders in the field will discuss the evidence base for drug and alcohol recovery models and what the implications are for therapeutic interventions. Using examples of best practice we will explore how drug treatment systems can gear up for the increased demand for recovery options from the public; the political support for recovery options and how to make this possible within the economic climate.

Contact: For more information please visit the website

Essentials: NPSA Suicide Prevention Toolkit - Updating Suicide Prevention Policy

Presented by: Vanessa Gordon, Head of Patient Safety, Mental Health & Learning Disabilities, and; Tyler Schofield, Research Associate and Business Analyst, National Patient Safety Agency. Despite the decline in inpatient suicides over the past 10 years (Appleby et al 2006), it still remains a concern that patients are able to take their lives by suicide whilst under the care of inpatient treatment. In November 2009, the NPSA launched an updated Suicide Prevention Toolkit for mental health inpatient wards. The toolkit is aimed at all mental health staff working within the inpatient setting. The purpose of this half-day seminar is to support the development of local suicide prevention strategies and establishing systems for suicide audit that fits local context.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Masterclass: CBT for Negative Symptoms in Schizophrenia

Date: 18 November 2010

Venue: Shine, Harehills, Leeds

Presented by Dr Bill Sellwood, Senior Lecturer, Division of Clinical Psychology, University of Liverpool. There have been advances in the psychological management of psychosis over the past twenty years. However these have focussed largely on hallucinations and delusions and the negative symptoms associated with psychosis have been ignored despite their disabling effects. This seminar aims to provide a state of play summary of cognitive behavioural approaches to this important clinical problem and will focus on the underlying nature of the negative syndrome and assessment, together with confounding factors and cognitive behavioural interventions. By the end of the session you should feel confident in developing CBT management plans for service users affected by the negative syndrome.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Challenging Behaviour

Date: 18 November 2010

Venue: ORT House Conference Centre, London NW1

People whose behaviour is described as challenging are among the most vulnerable to poor services, poor intervention and abuse. Yet over the last two decades we have seen a wealth of policy, research evidence and good practice guidance as to what works and how services should be developed and delivered. This conference will bring together the main stakeholders in services for people whose behaviour is described as challenging and examine what is good practice and how this can become embedded in everyday practice.

Pricing:

• £ 255.00 + VAT for Public sector/educational/charity/NHS'/local gov/voluntary orgs
• £ 295.00 + VAT for Central gov/private orgs
• £ 195.00 + VAT for Unwaged/student/small vol orgs

Contact: For further information and to download the full conference flyer please visit the website. Call Pavilion on 01273 623 222, email info@pavpub.com

Third Annual Safeguarding Conference

Date: 18 November 2010

Venue: Keyworth Centre, London

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust is pleased to annouce our 3rd annual safeguarding conference to be held in November 2010. The theme of this year's conference is "prevention issues in child maltreatment". Experts in the field will be presenting on various topics relevant to the prevention of child maltreatment.

The delegate fee for this one-day conference is £199 including lunch, refreshments and conference materials. Speakers include Professor Kevin Browne, Dr Arnon Bentovim and AFRUCA.

Contact: To book please email slamlearningsolutions@slam.nhs.uk or call 020 3228 3177. For further information please visit our website.

Essentials: Mindfulness and Acceptance Based Treatment for Chronic Pain

Date: 19 November 2010

Venue: The Village Hotel, Leeds

Presented by Dr Lance McCracken, Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Clinical Lead, Centre for Pain Services, Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Bath. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is currently the dominant psychological approach to chronic pain management. New treatment approaches within CBT include mindfulness-based methods and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). The purpose of this seminar is to introduce the theory, evidence, and methods of acceptance and mindfulness approaches to chronic pain. This will be done with a small amount of lecturing, additional discussion, demonstrations, and experiential exercises.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Masterclass: Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards – Where Are We Now?

Presented by Dr Tim Branton, Consultant Old Age Psychiatrist and AMD for Mental Health Legislation, Leeds Partnerships NHS Foundation Trust and Yogi Amin, Partner, Irwin Mitchell LLP. This half-day seminar aims to review the legal framework for lawful deprivation of liberty and bring you up to date with the latest decisions from the courts. The course is suitable for practitioners with responsibility for assessments, or management and commissioning of services and is recommended for DoLS Mental Health Assessors seeking annual ‘further relevant training’ which is required but not defined in regulations.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Rio International Eating Disorders and Obesity Conference 2010

There has been a tremendous response to ‘Rio International Eating Disorders and Obesity Conference 2010’. Our programme advisors, Professor Bryan Lask and Dr Rachel Bryant-Waugh, both leading authorities in the field, have brought together many international specialists to discuss key topical issues, offering you a unique chance to update and extend your current skills. The keynote presentations will be given by two of the world’s leading eating disorders experts:

• Professor Christopher G. Fairburn (UK)
• Professor Kelly Brownell (USA)
  

ADD-ON ALL DAY SESSION: 18 November: Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Eating Disorders (CBT-E): an overview
We are delighted to confirm that Professor Fairburn will be heading this add-on all day session. Places are strictly limited and can only be booked when registering for the conference.
Contact: For more information please visit the website or tel: +44 (0)207 5016762

Essentials: Challenges Facing Mental Health Services Working With Survivors of Torture

Date: 23 November 2010

Venue: The Village Hotel, Leeds

Presented by Dr Alison Scott, Head of Doctors, Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture, Scotland. Victims of torture can present in out-patient and in-patient settings and it can be a challenging and sometimes overwhelming experience for the clinician. The aim of this seminar is to provide some context and background information explaining some common threads of the refugee experience. We will consider a framework and resources for responding to what can seem like an overwhelming need. There will be examples of clinical scenarios and information about the mental health issues which arise for victims of torture.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Co-Morbid Mental Illness & Substance Misuse – Improving the Delivery of Effective Treatment

Date: 25 November 2010

Venue: Hilton Hotel, Leeds

The management of co-morbid mental health and substance misuse problems is one of the greatest challenges in psychiatry. Effective engagement may be difficult and consistent long term treatment seemingly impossible. However such co-morbidity is linked to an increased risk of both violence and suicide and it is therefore an area which will occupy much of a clinician’s time. This conference will explore both the challenges for clinicians and also strategies which can help effective management.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Section 12 Refresher Course

Date: 25 November 2010

Venue: Maudsley Hospital, London

This is a one-day course for doctors who need renewal of section 12 approval and do not require an Approved Clinician course. The fee for this one-day course is £200 including lunch.

Contact: To book please email slamlearningsolutions@slam.nhs.uk or call 020 3228 3177. For further information please visit our website.

XV Annual Course of Schizophrenia

The Schizophrenia Courses is aimed at mental health care professionals. Organized by the Psychiatry Service I of the General University Hospital “Gregorio Marañón” of Madrid, with the institutional and financial support of the Foundation for the Investigation and Treatment of Schizophrenia and other Psychotic Disorders and institutional member of ISPS (International Society for Psychological Treatments of Schizophrenias and Other Psychoses) . The objective is to facilitate the relationship and up-date the knowledge of all the professionals involved in and interested in understanding these patients better and helping them furthermore.

Contact: C/ Francisca Delgado 9, 5º. 28108 Alcobendas, Madrid Tel: 91 196 76 54, Fax: 91 196 76 64 Email: sec.tecnica@cursoesquizofreniamadrid.com  Website: http://www.viajesiberiacongresos.com/

Approved Clinician Training

Date: 26 November 2010

Venue: Maudsley Hospital, London

A one-day course for Section 12 Approved Clinicians who have attended a one day section 12 validation course since January 2009. This course is lead by Dr Frank Holloway Clinical Director and Consultant Psychiatrist.

The fee for this one day course is £200 including lunch.

Contact: To book please email slamlearningsolutions@slam.nhs.uk or call 020 3228 3177. For further information please visit our website.

Are Mental Health Services Killing Thinking?

This conference will consider the relationship between stress and clear thinking, and the impact of arousal on clients, their families, therapists, and wider systems. It will then explore ways clinicians from different professional and theoretical backgrounds have worked at retaining thinking whilst also responding to the realities of their work contexts. Speakers are Professor Carolyn Quadrio, Dr Josey Anderson, Jenny Brown, Richard Elms and Dr Megan Chambers. Registration fees by 30 September (including GST) for regular: $80, medical specialists: $220 and full time students: $50. Add $30 from 1 October.

Contact: Kerry Gunning Tel: (02) 9845-6577 Email: redbankconference@swahs.health.nsw.gov.au

Learning to use the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth (SAVRY)

The aim of this workshop is to introduce practitioners to the structured professional judgement approach to risk appraisal and management, as is pertained to adolescence. In particular, you will be introduced to the SAVRY (Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth; Borum, Bartel and Forth). The SAVRY is useful in the assessment of either male or female adolescents between the ages of 12 and 18 years. It may be used by professionals in a variety of disciplines to conduct assessments and guide management plans concerning the prevention of violence in youth.

Contact: For more information please visit the website. Email: Forensic.teachingunit@kcl.ac.uk

December 2010

Turning Treatment Failures into Success: CBT for OCD

This workshop will begin with a review of the theoretical and empirical work conducted on the psychopathology and treatment of different manifestations of OCD. The workshop will continue with practical instruction on the cognitive-behavioural assessment and treatment of a variety of forms of the disorder, with particular emphasis on the treatment of compulsive checking, contamination-related OCD and primary obsessions. Attendees will learn about cognitive case formulation, the importance of ongoing assessment, and specific therapeutic interventions, all following from cognitive-behavioural models of OCD. Presented by Professor Adam Radmonsky.

Contact: Email: cwi@reading.ac.uk Website

Revalidation – Can You Deliver?

Despite a clear acceptance of the need, it is as yet far from certain how revalidation will be delivered on the ground. Demonstration of the requirements is far from straightforward and it has become increasingly apparent that outcomes and activity are difficult to link to a single doctor’s performance. This one day conference will explore the factors which make up revalidation. The theoretical underpinnings will be followed by a discussion around how the process may be implemented, and the challenges still being faced.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Do Behavioural Addictions Really Exist?

Date: 1 December 2010

For many people, the concept of addiction involves the taking of drugs. Therefore it is
perhaps unsurprising that most official definitions concentrate on drug ingestion. Despite such definitions, there is now a
growing movement that views a number of behaviours as potentially addictive including many behaviours that do not involve the ingestion of a drug such as gambling, sex, exercise, videogame playing and internet use. This session will argue:

• that all addictions consist of a number of distinct common components (salience, mood modification, tolerance, withdrawal, conflict and relapse) and that there are many other types of commonality on a psychological, biological, sociological, and cultural level
• that addictions are a part of a biopsychosocial process and evidence is growing that excessive behaviours of all types do seem to have many commonalities. This may reflect a common etiology of addictive behaviour and suggests that addiction may be a syndrome an eclectic approach to the studying of addictive behaviour appears to be the most pragmatic way forward in the field.
  

Contact: Martin Pratt, The Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (ACAMH) Email: martin.pratt@acamh.org.uk Tel: 020 7403 7458 Fax: 020 7403 7081 Website

HCR-20 Violence Risk Assessment Scheme

Date: 2 - 3 December 2010

Contact: Andrew Sims Centre Email: ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk Tel: 0113 305 5638, or visit the website

Sleep Disorders 2010

Date: 7 December 2010

Contact: Tel: +44 (0) 207 501 6761 Fax: +44 (0) 207 978 8319 Email: flo.doel@markallengroup.com

Improving Prison Mental Health Care: The Challenges Ahead

A great deal of literature and policies have been published and developed over the last 10 years in regards to improving mental health services within prisons and improving integration of services across the criminal justice system for those with mental health problems. This conference will allow professionals to consider how the mental health needs of prisons can be successfully met by understanding the key challenges and learning from services delivered elsewhere in the UK.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Substance Misuse and Mental Illness

Date: 10 December 2010

Contact: Andrew Sims Centre Email: ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk Tel: 0113 305 5638, or visit the website

Essentials: Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy

Date: 14 December 2010

Presented by: Rebecca Crane, Clinical Research Fellow, Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice, Bangor University. Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) is now recommended by NICE as a treatment of choice for preventing future depression in those individuals who have experience three or more episodes. It uses the structure and process of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction programme and integrates within these some aspects of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. This seminar will offer an orientation to the theoretical and scientific background to MBCT and to the evidence based and ongoing research on the approach, and also the particular teaching themes and methodologies employed within MBCT which support participants in working in new ways with their vulnerability to depression.

Contact: Andrew Sims Centre Email: ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk Tel: 0113 305 5638, or visit the website

Working with People who Self Harm

Date: 14 December 2010

Venue: Maudsley Hospital, London

Self-harm is a complex issue which is frequently misunderstood, often being viewed as attempted suicide or as a means of gaining attention, but for many it is a means of coping with internal distress.

This one day course is designed to provide workers from all disciplines with an introduction to understanding self-harm and the opportunity to explore the dynamics and clinical dilemmas involved in this difficult area of work. The training aims to be informative, challenging, and supportive and to provide a forum for individuals to share experiences of working with this client group. By the end of the course participants will be able to:

• Recognise what constitutes self-harm
• Understand the reasons and functions that lie behind an individual harming themselves
• Be able to understand the complex association and differences between self-harm and suicide
• Be aware of the NICE guidelines
• Recognise the associated dilemmas of working with self-harm
• Consider how these dilemmas can be addressed
• Be aware of what support needs to be in place for workers to be enabled in their task with individuals who self-harm
  

This one-day course is run by Jane Bunclark, Clinical Service Lead for the National Self-Harm Service, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust.The cost of this one day course is £150 per person

Contact: To book please email slamlearningsolutions@slam.nhs.uk or call 020 3228 3177. For further information please visit our website.

Models of Dementia: the Good, the Bad and the Future

There are many limitations associated with modelling chronic diseases that take decades to fully develop in humans and of which there is a lack of insight to the initiating molecular processes. The majority of models of Alzheimer’s Disease and other dementias mimic pathological features of the disease rather than potential causal events and many models often harbour gene mutations associated with rare familial forms of the disease.

The time is right for a focused debate to establish the good, the bad and the future of this important aspect of the fight to reduce dementia in the human population. The meeting has three major aims:

• To reduce the number of animals used in this field by highlighting the benefits and drawbacks of the current models
• To identify specific research needs that should be supported and developed in the future
• To provide funding agencies with a balanced published record of the use of these models, for more effective assessment of future applications for support.

Contact: Email: elizabeth.faircliffe@biochemistry.org Tel: 0207 685 2450 Website

January 2011

Research Methodology Course for Medical and Scientific Graduates

The objective of this Course is to provide a comprehensive overview of the current and future research tools required to perform cutting-edge basic science, translational and clinical research. The Course will consist of interactive lectures and opportunities for delegates to network with distinguished scientists, all of whom are recognised experts in their field. Our Course is aimed at scientists and medical graduates who are either seeking to pursue, or currently engaged in post-graduate research. The Course would also be useful for those involved in research who wish to update their knowledge of current research methods. Course Fee: £95

Contact: To find out more about the Research Methodology Course, please email Jill McNaughton, Secretariat Website

Psychological Therapies – Principles, Application, Guidance and Evidence

Recognition of the need for timely access to psychological therapies has never been greater. The evidence base is growing and guidance about the use of particular therapies is increasingly prominent. All professionals working in mental health services need to be aware of the indications for particular therapies and the guidance relating to them in order to make useful referrals and support service users through the process. This conference is designed to give you a clear understanding of each of these therapies, the evidence base for their use, and how and when they are used.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

Mentalization Based Treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder

Date: 20 January 2010

Venue: Maudsley Hospital, London

This one day workshop offers an introduction to a new therapy for Bordeline Personality Disorders. Mentalization refers to the ability to recognise and differentiate one's own behaviours, thoughts adn feelings and those of others. MBT is effective in Borderline Personality Disorders. The aim of the workshop is to develop and use concepts of mentalization and MBT in clinical work. This workshop is suitable for all mental health professionals and others working with Borderline Personality Disorders. Course tutors are Dr Duncan McLean, Cawley Centre, Maudsley Hospital and Dr Giovanni Polizzi, Maudsley Psychotherapy Services.

The fee for this one day course is £250 including copy of "Mentalization Based Treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder" by Bateman and Fonagy and lunch.

Contact: To book please email slamlearningsolutions@slam.nhs.uk or call 020 3228 3177. For further information please visit our website.

February 2011

Neuroanatomy for Psychiatry

One day advanced functional brain anatomy course which covers the neuroanatomy of memory, cognition and emotion. There will be a detailed discussion of cerebral cortex, basal ganglia and limbic system - includes diffuse neurotransmitter systems. This is a excellent refresher course for consultants. It is also ideal MRCPsych revision course for trainees. Mean feedback score (Feb 2009): 4.8/5.0

Price including lunch and refreshments: £175

Contact: More details on the website.

March 2011

HCR-20 Violence Risk Assessment Scheme

Presented by Dr Steve Barlow, Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Trust. The HCR-20 is a practical tool for the clinical assessment of risk of violence in the mentally disordered. Its use is becoming increasingly widespread in forensic and general adult psychiatric services and provides empirically-based structured clinical guidance by combining information about historical risk factors that have a strong evidence base with dynamic, variable clinical risk factors and clinical judgments. The aim of this small group workshop is for you to become familiar with the principles underpinning risk assessment in the mentally disordered, competent in the use of the HCR-20 instrument and capable of formulating a comprehensive, detailed risk assessment and risk management plan for your patients.

Contact: For more information please visit our website. Email ASC@leedspft.nhs.uk or call 0113 305 5638

10th London International Eating Disorders Conference

The three day conference combines plenary sessions, concurrent sessions, short papers and posters. These will convey the very latest ideas and research findings in the field of eating disorders. The aim is to encourage maximum response from participants and a lively exchange of ideas The conference offers participants the opportunity to choose six 90 minute sessions out of a total of 36 to maximize the relevance of the meeting to each individual. Plenary themes:

• Men and eating disorders
• The therapeutic alliance
• Coping and resilience

Contact: For more information please visit the website or Tel: +44 (0)207 5016762

Click here to find out about conferences and training events organised by the Mental Health Charity, Mind.

Click here for information about training events offered by the West Midlands Institute of Psychotherapy.