About us

• To advance both within and without the College all modalities of psychotherapy (cognitive behavioural, psychodynamic and systemic) as an integral part of psychiatry
• To improve public knowledge of psychotherapy in the treatment of mental illness
• To increase theoretical and clinical knowledge of psychotherapy in the training of psychiatrists
• To promote research in psychotherapy.

We will advance these aims by:

• Fostering the establishment of consultant medical psychotherapy posts, and development of psychotherapy departments in all mental health units
• Ensuring representatives are on appropriate committees in the College
• Having an active psychotherapy training committee developing and monitoring standards of psychotherapy training
• Responding to documents of relevance to psychotherapy, for example from the Department of Health
• Working with other organisations involved in the development of psychological treatments such as the British Psychological Society and the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies
• Arranging annual conferences on topics of interest.

We are committed to furthering understanding of, and advancing appropriate psychological treatment for, diverse forms of human distress and disorder.

The approach to understanding people and the systems within which they are located integrates biological, psychological and social levels of explanation, and pays special attention to the significance of relationships in a lifespan developmental perspective. This is an approach to understanding and promoting wellbeing, as well as shaping and informing interventions for ill-health and social dysfunction. We recognise the potential significance of trauma and transitions in mental illness and of resilience in mental health.

We seek to teach and disseminate this perspective both within and outside the College, and to ensure it is embedded in the training and practice of psychiatry. We encourage and support research in psychotherapy and related fields. We are committed to raising public awareness of the profound importance of relationships throughout development and in treatment.

In all this we work collaboratively with our patients and with their families and friends, respecting their privacy and dignity, as well as with other colleagues, professions and organisations.

We support clinicians to deliver this approach across a range of settings including:

1. The direct delivery of clinical care to individuals to promote their recovery from mental distress
2. The targeting of psychological and social interventions to reduce distress in families, in communities, and in the broader systems in which an individual lives
3. The provision of clinical supervision to raise the quality of health care
4. The provision of robust clinical governance frameworks for psychological therapy services
5. The training of undergraduate and postgraduate medical staff
6. The development and maintenance of psychological, social and cultural health in
   institutions
7. The promotion of public understanding of mental health.

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If you would like to get in touch please email us.