History of the Psychiatrists Support Service

The Royal College of Psychiatrists initially set up a scoping group to look into the feasibility of developing a service to support psychiatrists in difficulty. This led to the formation of the Psychiatrists' Support Service, which was set up and formally launched in June 2007. An Associate Registrar and a Support Service Manager were appointed to lead the service.

Following the successful launch of the service, a group of experienced psychiatrists (advisors covering the range of issues likely to be raised by doctors in difficulty) were appointed to a core group. This group supported the management of the service and were the initial cohort of advisors. These were psychiatrists who had worked as medical directors, for the National Clinical Assessment Service, and who had experience with the General Medical Council or special knowledge of inquiries such as workplace relationship issues, stalking, etc. 

Since that time, further advisors have been recruited to ensure geographical spread and to add to the specialist experience and there has always been trainee advisor representation on the committee. The PSS continues to link in with other College committees, and the service has also developed strong links with external organisations such as the General Medical Council, the National Clinical Assessment Service, and the British Medical Association, and offers support on a wide range of professional and personal issues. There is more information on the types of problems that the Psychiatrists' Support Service are contacted about on this website.

To contact the Psychiatrists' Support Service please telephone: 020 7245 0412  or e-mail: pss@rcpsych.ac.uk

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