Joint Spring Conference of the Child and Adolescent and General Adult Faculties 2025 | Programme

From Childhood to Adulthood: Advancing Mental Health Together

Venue: RCPsych London/LivestreamDate: Tuesday 18 March 2025

This conference provides a great opportunity for joint learning and networking with colleagues from another faculty to help improve services across the lifespan. The conference will also include dedicated sessions and activities for resident doctors, details can be found in the programme.

Please note that the programme is still subject to change and all times are listed in GMT.

  • 8.45am - 9.15am Registration (in-person delegates only)
  • Dr Elaine Lockhart, Chair of the Child and Adolescent Faculty

    Dr Jon Van Niekerk, Chair of the General Adult Faculty

  • Chairs: Dr Elaine Lockhart, Chair of the Child and Adolescent Faculty and Dr Sophia Senthil, Co-Academic Secretary of the General Adult Faculty

    9.30am

    Beyond the neurotype: Rethinking Neurodevelopmental Conditions

    Dr Jessica Eccles, Chair of the RCPsych Neurodevelopmental Psychiatry Special Interest Group (NDPSIG) and Reader in Brain-Body Medicine in the Department of Clinical Neuroscience at BSMS.

    9.50am

    Outcome predictors in ADHD: from neuroimaging to epidemiology

    Dr Valeria Parlatini, Associate professor/Hon. Consultant in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Southampton/Hampshire, and IOW Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust 

    10.10am

    What I've learnt as a psychiatrist treating ADHD in children, as a mother of a child with ADHD and as a woman with recently diagnosed ADHD

    Dr Helen Tindle, Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

    10.30am

    Questions from the audience

     

  • 10.55am - 11.25am Morning refreshments
  • Chaired by Professor Sonia Johnson, Co-Academic Secretary of the General Adult Faculty and Dr Guy Northover, Vice-chair of the Child and Adolescent Faculty

    Seeing the whole family - the KidsTime approach to supporting parental and child mental health

    Ms Dympna Cunnane, CEO of Our Time Charity

    Aymen Belkacemi, Expert by Experience

    Impacts of children's mental health difficulties on parents

    Dr Faith Martin, Senior Lecturer, University of Bath

  • When patients experience serious incidents, the impact on clinicians involved in their care can be significant and often goes unnamed and undiscussed. In this talk, we aim to address the impact of patient suicide and serious incidents on clinicians and consider practical ways that trusts can support doctors going through this, as well as hearing lived experience testimony.

    Chaired by Dr Henny Blyth, ST5 General Adult Psychiatry, North London NHS Foundation Trust:

    • Riding the wave: understanding and navigating the turbulent aftermaths of serious incidents
      Dr Rachel Gibbons, Vice-Chair Psychotherapy Faculty Consultant Psychiatrist, RCPsych

    • Supporting doctors through the inquest process
      Dr Hannah Cappleman, Consultant Psychiatrist, Greater Manchester Mental Health

    • A personal reflection on the experience of attending an inquest
      Dr Khushbakht Ghazanfar, Consultant and Associate Registrar in Sustainability, SLaM & RCPsych

  • Chaired by Dr Asilay Seker and Dr Mohammad Kashif, Consultant Psychiatrist, Coventry & Warwickshire Partnership Trust

    • The interface between complex trauma and developmental disorders in children and young people

    Dr David Kingsley

    • Title TBC

    Dr Jonathan Hurlow, Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist & Mentalisation Based Therapy Supervisor 

  • 12.40pm - 1.30pm Lunch
  • Chairs: Dr Jeya Balakrishna, Associate Registrar for Coaching and Mentoring, RCPsych and Dr Jose Mediavilla, Financial Officer of the Child and Adolescent Faculty

    Speakers:

    • Dr Philippa Greenfield, Joint Presidential Lead for Women and Mental Health, Royal College of Psychiatrists.
    • Professor Helen Minnis, Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Glasgow.
    • Sal Smith, Head of Lived Experience and Co-Production, NCCMH.
  • This session will not be livestreamed or recorded.

    Much of the discussion around clinician wellbeing targets doctors building their own personal resilience and where to seek support for mental distress or difficulty. While this is clearly an important factor, we will focus in this session on a systemic and relational approach, considering structural ways to make work work for doctors. With this in mind, we will be spending half of the session in the practical wellbeing activity of group singing! No musical knowledge or talent will be required.

    Chaired by Dr Fiona Shaw, ST4 CAHMS, Manchester Foundation Trust and Dr Henny Blyth, ST5 General Adult Psychiatry, North London NHS Foundation Trust

    Understanding our workplace well-being through a relational lens

    Dr Hannah Cappleman, Consultant Psychiatrist, Greater Manchester Mental Health 

    Systemic wellbeing

    Dr Ananta Dave

    Leading a wellbeing activity - group singing

    Dr Hubertus Himmerich, Clinical Researcher in Eating Disorders, King's College London

    Harriet Phillips

  • The World Health Organisation has described climate change as one of the greatest health threats of the twenty first century. Mental health, physical health and wellbeing are interconnected with climate change via multiple and diverse pathways. 

    It is also increasingly acknowledged that engaging with nature improves psychological well-being and can mitigate susceptibility to mental illness. This talk will address the challenges facing patients and health care providers, the benefits of experiencing nature and how we can offer sustainable services. 

    Chaired by Dr Matthew Leahy, Child and Adolescent psychiatry higher trainee, HPFT

    Speakers:

    • Dr Catriona Mellor, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust 
    • Dr Nicholas Barnes, EcoCAMHS co-chair.
    • Dr Katherine Kennet, Planetary Health and Sustainability co-chair, Royal College of Psychiatrists.
    • Dr Jacob Krzanowski, Consultant and Associate Registrar in Sustainability, SLaM & RCPsych
  • 2.45pm - 3.15pm Afternoon refreshment break
  • Suicide and self-harm prevention are among the most pressing challenges in mental health today. This guidance represents a pivotal step towards a more compassionate and effective approach to supporting individuals at risk. Moving beyond outdated risk prediction models, which have too often fallen short, we are embracing a person-centred, safety-focused framework that prioritises the individual’s well-being over simplistic categorisations of "low" or "high" risk. 

    This new approach focuses on understanding the complex and dynamic nature of mental health. It promotes holistic care, considering the psychological, social, and physical factors that contribute to a person's safety. By adopting collaborative safety planning and biopsychosocial assessments, this guidance encourages clinicians to build meaningful therapeutic relationships that can foster trust, communication, and ultimately, a more effective path to recovery. 

    We are proud to offer this guidance to all sectors—public, private, voluntary, and local authorities. It is designed for use in all NHS-commissioned services, equipping practitioners with practical tools and strategies to enhance patient safety. Together, we can strive to ensure that individuals at risk of suicide or self-harm receive the care, understanding, and support they need to find hope and healing. 

    This marks a shift in how we think about and deliver mental health care, with the potential to transform lives and improve outcomes for people in crisis. It is a change that puts the person first, emphasising their safety and well-being above all else.

    Chaired by:

    • Dr Jon Van Niekerk, Chair of the General Adult Faculty.
    • Dr Shermin Imran, Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Lead Consultant, FCAMHSNW Service, Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust. 

    3.15pm

    The case for change

    Philip Pirie, parent bereaved by suicide and a suicide prevention campaigner.

    3.35pm

    Staying safe from suicide: key guidance messages and implementation

    Seamus Watson, National Improvement Director NHSE and Programme Lead for Staying Safe from Suicide.

    3.55pm

    Self-harm in young people

    Professor Dennis Ougrin, Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, QMUL

    4.15pm

    Questions from the audience and panel discussion

    Chaired by:

    • Dr Jeya Balakrishna, Associate Registrar for Coaching and Mentoring, Royal College of Psychiatrists.
    • Dr Shermin Imran, Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist and Lead Consultant FCAMHSNW Service, Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust.

    4.45pm

    Closing comments

    • Dr Jon Van Niekerk, Chair of the General Adult Faculty.
    • Dr Shermin Imran, Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Lead Consultant, FCAMHSNW Service, Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust. 


  • All delegates are invited to attend this drinks reception (no ticket purchase necessary.)

    Non-alcoholic drinks will also be available.

    Members' Area (Ground Floor) Royal College of Psychiatrists.

To encourage open dialogue, scientific discovery and enrich learning, we provide our delegates with the opportunity to hear from a diverse range of views and presentations. All the speakers, panellists and participants views and comments are their own and not the established views of the College. Speakers should expect probing questions and healthy debate.

The College expects all content of event programmes, and the behaviour of the speakers and the delegates, to be professional, respectful and to uphold the College values.

The College does not endorse any programme content or behaviour displaying any form of prejudice or discrimination.

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