1. Update from the President: Professor Sheila
Hollins
2. New Grade: Specialist
Associateship
3. New College
reports
4. Professor Hamid Ghodse: Elected President
of International Narcotics Control Board
5. New appointment: National Clinical Lead
for IT (Mental Health)
6. Learning and teaching undergraduate
psychiatry: 5-6 November 2008 at The Lakeside Conference Centre,
Aston University, Birmingham
7. King's Fund warns of rising mental health
care costs
8. Alan Johnson launches consultation to
improve support for volunteers
9. Carers Strategy launches
10. That Face at the Duke Of York's Theatre
Written by Polly Stenham
11. Psych Vision: Charity Cricket Match: 20
July 2008
12. What's
new?
1. Update from the
President: Professor Sheila Hollins
This is my last contribution to an
e-newsletter as President and I would like to use it to thank all
of you who have a College appointed or elected role, for the work
you do to support colleagues, and to improve treatment and care for
patients.
On 2nd July at our annual conference
at Imperial College, I will share some of my experiences and
insights from my role, before I hand over to Dinesh Bhugra.
As President, I have had the
privilege, for three years, to lead the huge team effort which is
the College and I know I am leaving it in safe hands - your
hands.
There is one request I would like to
make and that is that each of you encourages other people's
potential to be a psychiatrist. I am thinking particularly
about the medical student in whom you recognise a talent for this
work, a trainee or staff grade doctor who is still undecided about
his or her future career, or a newly appointed consultant.
Psychiatry is a great career but sometimes the recognition of this
takes a little encouragement.
I hope to see many of you at
the Annual Meeting and to thank you personally for your
support to me over the last three years.
2. New Grade:
Specialist Associateship
The College has launched a new grade of
Specialist Associateship and hopes that members of the College
will help by drawing it to the attention of colleagues who may
be eligible.
Specialist Associateship is open to registered medical
practitioners working in the UK who have:
- at least 5 years experience in
psychiatry.
- specialist training which has been assessed
in the UK as being at least equivalent to a full programme of
specialist training in psychiatry in the UK.
- support from two sponsors who are subscribing
Members or Fellows of the College.
- support from the Chair of the College
Division in which the applicant is working at the time of
application (the College will submit completed forms to Divisional
Chairs on behalf of applicants).
3. New College
reports
Rethinking risk to others is the first of a series of
reports from the Royal College of Psychiatrists on the risks posed
to others by users of mental health services. Subsequent reports
will consider other areas of risk, including risk to self, and risk
through self-neglect.
This report aims to stimulate further debate
and research and, most importantly, improvements in clinical
practice, and patient and public safety. It sets out current
understanding of best practice in risk assessment and management,
and points to future action needed for further improvements.
Managing urgent mental
health needs in the acute trust is a new guide by
practitioners for managers and commissioners in England and Wales.
The report has been produced by the Royal College of Psychiatrists
and the College of Emergency Medicine in collaboration with the
Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Nursing.
This report highlights the urgent need to
develop national standards that will inform the commissioning of
services to guarantee that people in need receive prompt assessment
and management by professionals who are appropriately trained.
Psychological therapies in psychiatry and primary
care
is the title of a new report from the Royal College of
Psychiatrists in partnership with the Royal College of General
Practitioners.
The report aims to improve provision of
psychological therapies to people suffering from mental and
physical disorders in both primary and secondary care settings. It
provides information and guidance about psychological therapies
that should be useful to psychiatrists, GPs, employers and
commissioners of services.
4. Professor Hamid
Ghodse: Elected President of International Narcotics Control
Board
Professor Hamid Ghodse, Honorary Fellow and
Editor of International Psychiatry, has been elected
President of the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) for
the ninth time.
Prof Ghodse has been a member of the
Vienna-based INCB since 1992. He served as president eight times
between 1993 and 2005, and began his ninth one-year term at the end
of May. Prof Ghodse said he was honored to be elected again,
describing the role as “very challenging”. 
The INCB is an independent body, established
by the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs to monitor and
support Government compliance with the international drug control
treaties.
Prof Ghodse said: “The Board’s major
achievement has been ensuring that the international trade,
manufacture and distribution of controlled drugs – which includes
narcotics, analgesics and psychotropic drugs – are well-regulated
and controlled. There are hardly any diversions in the
international trade from licit sources to the illicit market.
However, there remains a major illicit drug problem around the
world, which the board has brought to the attention of governments
globally.
“Next year is the centenary of the first
international commission on narcotic drugs, which met in Shanghai
in 1909. I will use my presidency to make sure this anniversary is
celebrated, and used to encourage governments to make further
commitments to the fight against drug problems and improving public
education.”
Prof Ghodse has been a Professor of Psychiatry
and International Drug Policy at the University of London since
1987, and is director of the International Centre for Drug Policy
at St George’s. He is the author of over 300 scientific papers on
drug-related issues and an advisor for a number of international
fora.
5. New appointment:
National Clinical Lead for IT (Mental Health)
Dr Joe McDonald has recently been appointed as
National Clinical Lead for IT (Mental Health). Joe is a Consultant
Adolescent Psychiatrist practicing in South Tyneside and a Member
of the College. He is a former Medical Director of a Mental
Health Trust and a Caldicott Guardian. He is keen to hear the
views of members with regard to all matters to do with IT in mental
health. In particular he wants to know what psychiatrists need from
IT systems and also any current examples of good practice or
concerns members may have about IT issues. You can write to him
at:
Adolescent Psychiatry Department
Monkwearmouth Hospital
Newcastle Road
Sunderland SR5 1NB
Email: joe.mcdonald@nhs.net
6. Learning and
teaching undergraduate psychiatry: 5-6th November
2008 at The Lakeside Conference Centre, Aston
University, Birmingham
A one- and a half day conference organised by
the Royal College of Psychiatrists’s Scoping Group on Undergraduate
Education in Psychiatry and the Higher Education Academy. We
welcome contributions and participation from anyone who contributes
to undergraduate education in psychiatry in the UK and
elsewhere.
Conference themes
- Content of psychiatry programmes
- Promoting psychiatry to medical students
- Staff development
We are particularly interested in highlighting
good practice in areas such as:
- Practical skills and improving teaching and
Research in Psychiatry (in medical education)
- Teaching innovations
Abstracts should be submitted via the online
form at http://www.medev.ac.uk/ and abstracts
should be sent to enquiries@medev.ac.uk.
7. King's Fund warns
of rising mental health care costs
The chief executive of the King's Fund has
warned that
the cost to the NHS of mental health care will rise
substantially over the next 20 years, due to the large
increase in the number of people suffering from dementia.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4's 'Today' programme,
Niall Dickson said that while the prevalence of mental health
disorders such as schizophrenia is likely to remain
stable, the incidence of dementia will rise considerably
as a result of Britain's ageing population.
"I think the fact is that it's not just an
ageing population, it's the fact that we're going to have very
significant numbers of very old people and they will be more
dependent.They are less likely to have someone who's able to
support them. That means that they won't necessarily have a husband
or wife that's going to be around to give them the kind of social
care and support, so they will be more dependent in that way.
"It is just a consequence of an ageing
society. We don't yet in terms of dementia - although we are
starting to have some drugs which are controversial about what sort
of impact they have - there's no sign of a magic bullet.
The King's Fund estimates that the cost of
caring for people with mental illness will rise to £47 billion a
year over the next two decades, from £22.5 billion in 2007.
8. Alan Johnson
launches consultation to improve support for
volunteers
Health Secretary, Alan Johnson has launched a
consultation on a package of measures to improve support for
volunteers in the NHS, including further investment to support
their involvement.
The consultation will lead to the creation of
a national volunteering strategy next year, with the aim of the
discussion to look at the esteem and profile of volunteering; to
improve management and support for individuals and to allow for a
more robust evaluation of the outcomes and benefits of
volunteering.
Commenting, Mr Johnson said: 'I am pleased to announce the start of
a consultation on volunteering. As we prepare to celebrate the
NHS's 60th Anniversary, we would like to pay tribute to the
volunteers who help shape the service and for us all to recognise,
encourage and support volunteering. This document is built on
expert insight from stakeholders across the public and third
sectors and aims to articulate a clear vision of how volunteering
fits into the health, well-being and social care system.'
9. Carers Strategy
launches
The Government has launched a new multi million pound strategy
to support, help and improve the lives of Britain's army of
carers.
The Carers Strategy is underpinned by £255 million to
implement some immediate steps alongside with medium and long-term
plans.
New commitments in the strategy include:
- £150 million towards planned short breaks for carers
- £38 million towards supporting carers to enter or re-enter the
job market
- £6 million towards improving support for young
carers.
Other schemes include the piloting of annual health checks for
carers to help them stay well and training for GPs to recognise and
support carers. A more integrated and personalised support service
for carers will be offered through easily accessible information,
targeted training for key professionals to support carers, and
pilots to examine how the NHS can better support carers.
Health Secretary, Alan Johnson said: 'To say that carers are
unsung heroes and heroines is without doubt an understatement. They
do an amazing job and deserve our respect, our understanding and
our support.
This new strategy is another big step forward, and has the
commitment of seven Government Departments, carers and those who
work with them."
There are currently about 5.2 million carers in England and
Wales. Nearly half of them provide more than 20 hours care a week
and over a million provide more than 50 hours care per week. The
demand for care will rise, with the number of people over 85, those
most in need of care, rising by over 50 percent in the next 10
years.
10. That Face at the Duke Of
York's Theatre Written by Polly Stenham
1 May - 5 July 2008
''Explosive and
gobsmacking'' Observer
That Face, Polly Stenham's
multi-award winning, critically acclaimed play transfers to the
West End for a ten week season.
That Face is a compelling portrayal
of an affluent family in freefall.
“At the centre of the action lies a bed patently occupied by the
alcoholic, pill-popping Martha and her 18-year-old son, Henry.
Abandoned by her Hong Kong-based ex-husband, Martha looks to Henry
to be a mixture of lover, nurse and playmate. The threatened
expulsion of daughter Mia from her posh school for complicity in
torturing and drugging a classmate sends the children's father.
Stenham's god-given gift, however, is an
ability to communicate pain and longing. The most moving aspect of
the play is Martha's morbid fixation with her son. Lindsay Duncan
brings to the role a blanched beauty and dreamy sensuality so that
when, gazing at the bed, she says "I promise never again", you know
it is a vow she will never keep. Duncan's brilliance is matched by
Matt Smith whose hapless Henry is both one of those whom Oedipus
wrecks and a residual snob who greets his returning father with
"you reek of duty-free". Jeremy Herrin's admirably spartan
production, deftly designed by Mike Britton, contains highly
accomplished performances from Hannah Murray as the casually
sadistic Mia and Julian Wadham as the defective dad”
A special allocation of best tickets are
available at just £25 (normally £45) through the Royal
Court's Box Office.
PsychVision is an independent
body founded by enthusiastic psychiatric trainees in the United
Kingdom who want to make a positive difference in the field of
mental health. The aim is to “connect minds” by working with a
philosophy to enhance mental health awareness, promote research and
fight stigma.
We strive towards sensitising not only medical
professionals but the greater public by organising mental health
conferences, educational sessions and charity events, with
effective media involvement. Though there are a number of
organisations working independently for mental health, we would
provide a common platform to engage and support these organisations
to work jointly.
Our members are from various professions and
we invite medical students, foundation trainees, junior doctors and
all individuals from any background or walk of life to join us.
For more information on the above event
contact Dr Samir Shah or Dr Omer Malik on psychvision@googlemail.com
Website: http://www.psychvision.co.uk/
Please
click here for an information leaflet.
12. What's
New?
