Psychological Medicine and Psychiatry

The Division of Psychological Medicine and Psychiatry is the largest group of researchers and teachers at the IoP. Many of the Division’s 360 staff also work as psychiatrists or psychologists within South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, providing clinical services in their field of expertise.

There are 25 sections within the Division dealing with different aspects of research into mental illness, ranging from eating disorders to psychosis, from dementia to war-related mental ill-health. The Division has a turnover of more than £12 million in research grant funding.

The sections are embraced by two departments within the Division.

Professor Robin Murray is overall Head of the Division and also leads the Department of Psychiatry. He is Professor of Psychiatry and his research focuses on finding the causes of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and developing better treatments for them. He runs part of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust’s National Psychosis Unit at Bethlem Royal Hospital: people from across the UK come to this specialist unit for outpatient or inpatient care. Professor Murray trained in psychiatry at the Maudsley Hospital and was formerly Dean of the IoP. He also heads the Section of General Psychiatry within the Department of Psychiatry: much of the research carried out by this Section focuses on establishing the causes of psychosis.

Professor Simon Wessely leads the sister Department of Psychological Medicine. He is Professor of Epidemiological and Liaison Psychiatry and Director of the King’s Centre for Military Health Research, a joint venture between the Department of Psychological Medicine and King’s College London’s Department of War Studies (in the School of Social Science and Public Policy). He is an Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist at both King’s College Hospital and The Maudsley, and is Director of the Clinical Trials Unit of the IoP and South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, based here, within the Department of Psychological Medicine. His main current research is about various aspects of military health, including ‘Gulf War Syndrome’. He is Honorary Civilian Consultant Advisor in Psychiatry to the British Army.

The Department of Psychological Medicine focuses on common mental disorders: general hospital psychiatry; family therapy; primary care psychiatry; eating disorders; social psychiatry and psychiatry in the military, for example. The research of the Department of Psychiatry is about more severe disorders: schizophrenia and bipolar disorder; Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia; and addictions, for example. The two departments also differ in their research methodologies. Psychological Medicine carries out epidemiological, clinical and psychological research, including cross sectional studies, cohorts and randomised controlled trials. Psychiatry concentrates on biological research, including genetics and neuroimaging.

The Division is responsible for teaching psychiatry and psychology to medical students at King’s College London School of Medicine, one of the largest schools of medicine in the UK. The Division also runs nine postgraduate taught programmes: visit the Courses and teaching page for details of the Mental Health Studies (Learning Disabilities) Programme; the MSc in Mental Health Studies (Organisational Psychiatry and Psychology); the MSc in Mental Health Studies; the MSc in War and Psychiatry; the MSc in Clinical and Public Health Aspects of Addiction; the MSc in Psychiatric Research; the MSc in Family Therapy; the MSc in Mental Health in Learning Disabilities; and the Graduate Certificate in Family Therapy. More than 200 students are registered on these taught programmes.

Senior members of the Division offer supervision to students wishing to undertake a PhD: there are more than 100 PhD students working within Psychological Medicine and Psychiatry on a diverse range of projects. Potential PhD students should visit the Education Support Team pages to find out more.

Once a year, the Division organises two training courses for European psychiatrists, known as The Maudsley Forum. The Core Maudsley Forum offers psychiatry trainees and junior specialists with research interests the opportunity to learn about recent advances in psychiatry. A host of experts lead seminars and lecturers over the five day course. The three day Advanced Maudsley Forum runs during the same week and is designed for the academic psychiatrist: it offers training in research methodology and the management of research projects, from planning to writing. visit the Maudsley Forum pages to find out more. In October 2007, the Division is organising the first Mediterranean Maudsley Forum for research orientated psychiatrists. This will be held in Italy. Visit www.iop.kcl.ac.uk/MediterraneanMaudsleyForum for more information.

In addition to research and teaching activities, the Division organises a plethora of events each year to share its expertise with others working in the field as well as service users, carers and the general public. The regular Maudsley Debates, for example, have been held at the IoP since January 2000 and were the brainchild of Professor Robin Murray. There are up to six debates each year, open to the public, and topics are usually controversial. Visit the Events page to find out dates of Maudsley Debates or about other events organised by the Division, or email Events Manager Caroline Zanelli for more information. Past Maudsley Debates are available as podcasts.

The Division is also responsible for co-ordinating a number of publications, collectively known as the Maudsley Publications. Some of these are aimed at mental health professionals, while others appeal to a wider audience. The Maudsley Publications include Maudsley Discussion Papers (short papers dealing with controversial topics in mental health); the Maudsley Handbook of Practical Psychiatry; Maudsley Monographs (academic publications published by Psychology Press); Maudsley Prescribing Guidelines (for pharmacists, nursing staff and prescribers) and the Maudsley Neuropsychiatry Modules (a structured training package for learning the basis of neuropsychiatry). Visit the Maudsley Publication pages to find out more about the publications and how to order them.

• Courses and teaching
• Staff | who's who
• Contact us

• Psychosis IRG
• Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Interest Group
• Autumn Master Classes in Research Methods
• Volunteer to participate in research