SAS and scholarly: making space for research in clinical roles

As part of SAS Celebration Week, we hear from Dr Emmeline Lagunes-Cordoba, a specialty doctor and member of the College's Specialty and Specialist Doctors Committee. She talks about the academic side of her work and how this can be a satisfying career pathway for SAS doctors. 

I’m a Mexican psychiatrist and psychotherapist currently working as a specialty doctor in a crisis team. After finishing my training, I moved to the UK to study an MSc in War and Psychiatry, followed by a PhD in Health Services and Population Research — both at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London.

My research focused on the stigmatising attitudes psychiatrists can hold towards their own patients, and included developing an anti-stigma intervention aimed at improving the attitudes of psychiatry trainees. Although my current role is mainly focused on clinical care, I continue to engage with academic activities, including conducting research, writing editorials, reviewing for academic journals, and encouraging fellow SAS doctors to pursue careers in academia.

During my psychiatric training in Mexico, I realised that many psychiatrists, regardless of their roles, often expressed negative views about certain patients, particularly those with personality disorders or challenging behaviour. This led me to become interested in learning more about stigma and mental health, and eventually to conduct the first study in Mexico focused on addressing stigmatising attitudes among psychiatrists.

That study also helped start a conversation about stigma in the hospital where I trained, where it hadn’t previously been part of the psychiatric curriculum. I chose an academic path because I wanted to better understand and address an issue I knew was impacting the attitudes of fellow psychiatrists, and ultimately, the care we provide to our patients.

Before I started my training, I never considered an academic career. I wasn’t particularly interested in it, and I found it slightly daunting and unfamiliar, very different from the clinical work I had always focused on. However, after completing my PhD, I became more confident not only in my research skills but also in my clinical practice.

Appraising academic papers became easier and more interesting, and I felt more motivated to look for answers and ideas beyond traditional textbooks and guidelines. I’ve also gained great satisfaction from publishing papers and editorials, and from supporting fellow researchers by reviewing manuscripts for academic journals—knowing that my input can help improve and disseminate important findings, which is one of the main aims of academia.

To SAS doctors considering academic training, I’d say it’s a very interesting and satisfying pathway that is absolutely open to you and one you can pursue while working as a SAS doctor. Although SAS roles have traditionally focused on clinical care, they can also provide opportunities to conduct research with specific populations or in settings that might otherwise be difficult to access.

Like any other clinician, SAS doctors should be encouraged and supported if they decide to engage with academia. Your work can help address current knowledge gaps and, more importantly, improve psychiatric care.