Evidence-based Guidance for Digital Technologies and Telepsychiatry during COVID-19
25 June 2020
Dr Katharine Smith, Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford gave a talk on ‘Digital technologies and telepsychiatry: an evidence-based synthesis of current guidance in the context of COVID-19’ for the Data Science for Mental Health Interest Group based at The Alan Turing Institute in London on Thursday 18 June 2020.
COVID-19: Achieving Good Mental Health During Social Isolation
23 June 2020
The ‘Five Ways to Wellbeing’ is an evidence-based set of practical actions that can be performed daily to enhance wellbeing. They are to: learn, connect, take notice, give and be active. A new paper by Dr Rowan Diamond in the Oxford Cognitive Approaches to Psychosis (O-CAP) group suggests ways in which this framework of actions could be applied during this time of upheaval.
Children Show Increase in Mental Health Difficulties Over COVID-19 Lockdown – Same Pattern Not Seen in Teenagers
22 June 2020
Parents/carers of children aged 4-10 years of age reported that over a one-month period in lockdown, they saw increases in their child’s emotional difficulties, such as feeling unhappy, worried, being clingy and experiencing physical symptoms associated with worry.
Oxford Team to Research Evidence for Mental Health Benefits of Online Cultural Experiences
22 June 2020
A team of Oxford researchers has won a grant from the University’s Covid-19 Research Response Fund to study the effects of online cultural experiences on mental health. This new study will use the unique opportunity of lockdown and social distancing to gather new evidence.
Funded by Wellcome to advance science so no one is held back by mental health problems
8 June 2020
We are excited to announce that Catherine Harmer, Susannah Murphy and Liliana Capitão are one of a select number of teams funded by Wellcome to review the evidence on which aspects of interventions really make a difference in preventing and treating youth anxiety and depression.
Talking to Children about Illness and Death of a Loved One During the COVID-19 Pandemic
8 June 2020
The news that children could be faced with in the current COVID-19 pandemic may seem almost unspeakable. But, together, we must find words, and ways, to give voice to their experience and prevent millions of children struggling with their fears and uncertainty alone, say authors of a new Comment published in The Lancet Child and Adolescent Health.
Half of UK Parents Uncomfortable with Children Returning to School after COVID-19 Lockdown
3 June 2020
Anxiety Child and adolescent Early intervention Mental Health Psychological therapy
Half of UK parents do not feel comfortable about their children attending school following lockdown, according to early results from a new study asking parents and carers about their children’s mental health through the COVID-19 crisis.
Communication skills teaching innovation praised in national award scheme
29 May 2020
Course Mental Health Psychological medicine
The new teaching package aims to give students greater confidence and experience when consulting with patients who live with psychiatric illness.
The Duke of Westminster donates £1m to Oxford University’s COVID-19 mental health research
29 May 2020
Hugh Grosvenor, The Duke of Westminster, has donated £1m towards Oxford University’s COVID-19 mental health research programmes. This is part of the £10m donation announced by the Westminster Foundation last month to support the national COVID-19 relief effort.
Peer Support Training for Adolescents During the COVID-19 Outbreak
28 May 2020
Researchers from the Department of Psychiatry, Oxford University, Imperial College London and two third-sector organisations, The McPin Foundation and Youth Era are collaborating to co-design and deliver online peer support training for young people aged 16-18 years old in the UK.
Conspiracy Beliefs Reduce the Following of Government Coronavirus Guidance
26 May 2020
A new study from the University of Oxford shows that people who hold coronavirus conspiracy beliefs are less likely to comply with social distancing guidelines or take-up future vaccines.
How has COVID-19 Impacted on People's Vulnerability to Mental Illness and Depression?
26 May 2020
The Oxford University COSIE study (COvid-19, Social Isolation and Emotion) is an online study which asked people about their experiences during the coronavirus lockdown in late April 2020, while also using objective tests of psychological function to measure vulnerability to mental illness such as depression.
Virtual seminar series explores ethical aspects of exercising during lockdown
21 May 2020
A new online seminar series is exploring the ‘ethics of exercise’ during coronavirus lockdown measures in the UK.
How to Explain a Project in Under Two Minutes?
20 May 2020
Research leads in the Department of Psychiatry compete to share highlights from important projects in a speed round of talks. How did they do?
Are Outcomes After Self-Harm Better for Patients Assessed by a Psychiatric Nurse or a Psychiatrist in the General Hospital?
19 May 2020
New study from the Oxford Centre for Suicide Research, the Nuffield Department of Population Health and the UCL Division of Psychiatry shows that risk of repeat self-harm in patients who present to the general hospital after self-harm (intentional self-poisoning or self-injury) is the same whether they are assessed by a liaison psychiatric nurse or by a psychiatrist.
UKRI Funding Supports Development of Co-SPACE Study
14 May 2020
The COVID-19 Supporting Parents, Adolescents, and Children in Epidemics (Co-SPACE) study materials have been shared with international collaborators in more than 15 countries. This new funding will support the development of further collaborations, enable work to bring together datasets and make the linked data open access, as well as help increase recruitment to the study, especially among harder to reach groups.
Effects of Social Isolation and Lockdown on Adolescents in Oxfordshire
14 May 2020
A new study will determine current risks to adolescents with regards to isolation, online behaviours, anxiety and patterns of seeking support during COVID-19 crisis. In partnership with researchers at the University of Oxford, schools in Oxfordshire can agree to take part in the study for pupils aged 9 to 18 years (Years 5 to 13).
Oxford U-Flourish Student Wellbeing and Academic Success Study
12 May 2020
Over 800 Oxford undergraduate first year students took part in the initial wave of the U-Flourish study. The follow-up study will now ask these same students about their experiences to-date with questions specifically added into the survey about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their mental health and aspects of their student experience.
6th Edition of the Oxford Textbook of Medicine
11 May 2020
Recently published, the new edition of the Oxford Textbook of Medicine includes a much expanded section on Psychiatry for the physician.
New BBC Radio Series: The Anatomy of Melancholy
11 May 2020
A new BBC Radio 4 series: The Anatomy of Melancholy will air from Monday 11 May at 1.45 pm. The first episode is entitled - Who is free from melancholy?