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Psychodermatology: Treating mind and skin together (free webinar)
Dean's Grand Rounds
Thursday 15 October 2026, 4.00pm – 5.30pm
Overview
That the mind and skin are closely connected is intuitive and increasingly understood, but holistic care falls between interdisciplinary gaps. Psychiatrists are confident in the treatment of psychotic, obsessive-compulsive and affective disorders, but patients with conditions implicating the skin are far more likely to present to a dermatologist. General dermatologists are trained to identify the psychological impact of illness but are ill-equipped to provide adequate care for patients with a primary psychiatric issue. In conditions characterised by loss of insight, patients often pursue futile medical investigations from multiple clinicians while suffering from progressive symptom burden and functional restriction.
Psychodermatology was developed to meet the needs of patients for whom a joined-up approach is essential. Collaboration between psychiatry and dermatology is not new, but services remain nascent. In a psychodermatology clinic, a psychiatrist and dermatologist assess patients together, often with additional nursing and psychological input. Current guidance recommends regional availability of these services, with referrals generally received from secondary care dermatology. However, national access to psychodermatology expertise remains patchy. A national monthly MDT attempts to fill this advice gap.
This Dean's Grand Round aims to raise further awareness of psychodermatology for a psychiatric audience. We will present a theoretical overview of psychodermatological conditions and illustrate their impact through clinical and lived experience. We will show evidence of the impact that integrated psychodermatological services can make and advocate for psychiatrists to get involved through research and local service development.
Programme and slides
- Welcome and introduction from Dr Deepa Bagepalli Krishnan, Dean's Grand Rounds Lead, and Dr Thomas Elliott
- Context setting by Professor Anthony Bewley and Dr Ruth Taylor
- Evidence and best practice presented by Dr Thomas Elliott
- Contextual data presented by Dr Maria-Angeliki Gkini
- Change in action: translating psychodermatology into clinical practice, presented by Dr Padma Mohandas and Dr Nermin Saleh
- Lived experience presented by Dr Iyas Assalman
- Q&A with all speakers
- Closing comments from Dr Deepa Bagepalli Krishnan, Dean's Grand Rounds Lead.