Verena Hinze

Verena is pleased to consider applications from prospective students with an interest in young people's mental health. 

Verena Hinze is a Medical Research Foundation & Versus Arthritis Fellow at the University of Oxford, Department of Psychiatry. She is particularly interested in the interplay between physical and mental health in adolescence, and the personalisation of treatment options. 

Her current research focusses primarily on the relationship between chronic pain and suicidal risk in adolescence, within the broader context of adolescent mental health. This work builds on her doctoral thesis, where Verena has shown that pain is a common and independent correlate of suicidal risk in adolescence. Her research draws on developmental and clinical psychology, psychiatric epidemiology, public health, and qualitative research, with the aim to promote mental wellbeing, prevent mental health difficulties, and optimise support for those, who are currently struggling.

She is closely working with the Oxford Centre for Children & Young People in Pain, a specialised paediatric pain management service in Oxford, to ensure that her research addresses what matters most to adolescents with chronic pain, their parents, and the wider clinical team.

Verena sits on the People & Culture Committee and co-chairs the Career Development Working Group: Academic to support and empower academic staff and researchers in their career development. 

Prior to completing her DPhil at the University of Oxford, Verena has completed both her Bachelor degree (BSc) in Psychology and her Research Master degree (MSc (research) – cum laude) in Clinical and Health Psychology at Leiden University, the Netherlands. 

Verena has received independent research funding from the Medical Research Foundation, Versus Arthritis, the German foundations: Stiftung Oskar-Helene-Heim and FAZIT Stiftung, as well as the University of Oxford’s Public and Community Engagement with Research Seed Fund and the Lockey Fund.