Psych Matters

The year 2020 will be remembered as the year of the most significant global pandemic since the Spanish influenza.    Our mental health system is chronically strained and health professionals regularly struggle with burnout, at the best of times. The workforce shortage has consistently impacted the care provided to patients and COVID-19 introduced additional challenges. At international, national a...

The execution of individuals with mental disorder is prohibited by international law, such that the presence of mental disorder, and how it is dealt with during the investigatory or trial and sentencing process, may render a conviction legally unsafe.  Although legal principles designed to protect those with mental disorder from the death penalty are not in dispute, for them to operate mental heal...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Professor Lee-Fay Low is joined by Professor Henry Brodaty, Associate Professor Lyn Phillipson and Dr Meredith Gresham to discuss how to tell someone they have dementia, the evidence for post-diagnostic treatments and support, and the resources available at https://www.forwardwithdementia.org/au/ Professor Lee-Fay Low is Professor in Ageing and Health, University...

The prevalence of intellectual disability (or ID) in Australia is about 1 to 2% of the population and it is now recognized that not only do adults with an ID experience substantially higher rates of mental health problems than the rest of the population, but they also have difficulties in getting these needs met because of the range of barriers to people in accessing mental health services. These...

Dr Fiona Wilkes, Stage 2 Psychiatry Trainee, Dr Angus Finlay, Stage 3 Advanced Trainee, and Professor Jeffrey Looi, Psychiatrist, discuss their experiences in choosing and training in Psychiatry as a career. They discuss the process of choosing psychiatric training, experiences of training, the nature of the work with people suffering from mental illness, and the varied career possibilities within...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Dr Tanveer Ahmed and Dr Elizabeth Moore discuss the work and significance of the social, cultural and rehabilitation section of the College. Dr Tanveer Ahmed is a Sydney based psychiatrist, author and columnist. He works in both the private and public sectors, including as a Staff Specialist at Bankstown Community Health.  Dr Elizabeth Moore is the Coordinator Gen...

As 2021 draws to a close, the Psych Matters team would like to thank you for your support during the year.  We hope that you’ve enjoyed the many topics presented during 2021, and we look forward to bringing many more to you in 2022. We would especially like to thank College members and others who have generously given their time to develop and present Psych Matters, and we thank the management and...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Dr Vinay Lakra is joined by Dr Sidney Cabral, Dr Alida Connell and Dr Ajay Vijayakrishnan to discuss specialist international medical graduates transitioning to practice. Associate Professor Vinay Lakra Associate Professor Vinay Lakra is the President of the College. He is also a Clinical Director and a member of the Victorian Board of Medical Board of Australia....

In this episode of Psych Matters, Professor Colleen Loo and Dr Brett Simpson discuss Electro Convulsive Therapy. Professor Colleen Loo is a clinical psychiatrist and Professor of Psychiatry at the University of New South Wales, Sydney; Australia. She is an internationally recognised clinical expert and researcher in the field of ECT, ketamine and novel brain stimulation treatments (rTMS, tDCS) for...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Dr Nathan Gibson shares a panel discussion from a workshop, recently hosted at Congress in Hobart. The workshop provided valuable information and insight into the written exams and the marking process. Topic suggestion: If you have a topic suggestion or would like to participate in a future episode of Psych Matters, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact us by...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Associate Professor Mat Coleman and his guests discuss Smoking Cessation & E-Cigarettes. Joining in the discussion are Professor Hayden McRobbie and Dr Mark Montebello. Associate Professor Mat Coleman is the Clinical Director of the Great Southern Mental Health Service (WA Country Health Service) based out of Albany WA. He is also the inaugural chair of Rural...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Members of the RANZCP Military, Veterans and Emergency Services Personnel Mental Health Network engage in a lively discussion of how to improve assessment of current serving members and ex-serving veterans of the Australian Defence Force. This includes conducting a tailored history-taking process that includes specific aspects of service and transition to civilian...

Tobacco smoking remains the leading preventable cause of death in Australia. People with mental illness and substance use disorders smoke at rates significantly higher than the general population, have high levels of nicotine dependence and are less likely to be offered treatment to stop smoking. The management of tobacco smoking is one of the most important activities a mental health clinician or...

This episode provides a quick clinical update on the evidence-base and recommendations for managing mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and includes research and clinical recommendations regarding media exposure, managing misinformation, communication and maintaining mental health during the current pandemic. A/Prof Jeffrey Looi , MBBS Syd , MD ANU , DMedSc Melb , FRANZCP, AFRACMA, is...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Dr Andrew Amos and Professor Valsamma Eapen discuss the neurodevelopmental disorder, Tourette Syndrome. Professor Valsamma Eapen is Professor and Chair of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, UNSW Sydney and Head, Academic Unit of Child Psychiatry and Director of BestSTART Child Health Academic Unit at Southwest Sydney. She is Director of Early Years Program, Autism C...

This Psych Matters podcast discusses the challenges faced by early career psychiatrists as they transition into a consultant psychiatrist role in the public or private sectors. Drawing on the experiences of early-career, early mid-career and mid-later-career psychiatrists, Associate Professor Jeffrey Looi, Dr Samantha Loi and Dr Daniel Heard discuss issues including clinical, leadership, supervisi...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Dr Kym Jenkins, Dr Jon Jureidini and Dr Sue Lutton discuss the Philosophical and ethical issues of working with asylum seekers and refugees. Dr Kym Jenkins is a consultant psychiatrist, specialising in psychotherapy and consultation-liaison psychiatry. She is Chair of Council of Presidents of Medical Colleges, Chair of the Migrant and Refugee Health Partnership an...

In this episode of Psych Matters, authors of the 2020 Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists’ clinical practice guidelines for mood disorders, address some key aspects of translating and implementing the guidelines into clinical practice. These key areas were selected based on feedback received since the publication of the guidelines in January 2021, and include both practical a...

This episode of Psych Matters discusses the Australian psychiatric healthcare implications of the advent of Managed Care in Private Health Insurance with the recent emergence of a private company that can selectively contract with healthcare providers on behalf of insurers. The basic characteristics of managed care: selective contracting, financial incentives for performance and utilisation manage...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Dr Andrew Amos is joined by Dr Manjula O'Connor and Dr Karen Williams for a second, more clinically oriented podcast on Coercive Control. Dr Karen Williams describes specific strategies used by male perpetrators to systematically destroy female partner’s sense of agency and eliminate alternative sources of social, emotional, and financial support. Dr Manjula...

This episode of Psych Matters discusses research conducted by the Consortium of Australian-Academic Psychiatrists for Independent Policy Research and Analysis (CAPIPRA), focused on improve mental healthcare delivery for patients and the community. The research addresses responses to various commissions and inquiries related to mental healthcare, as well as analysis of population datasets on mental...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Dr Manjula O'Connor, Chair of the RANZCP's Family Violence Psychiatry Network, and Dr Karen Williams, Founder of the advocacy and support group Doctors Against Violence Towards Women, educate Dr Andrew Amos on the legal, clinical, and social functions of the recently established category of domestic violence known as coercive control. Dr O'Connor an...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Associate Professor Jeffrey Looi and Dr Rebecca Reay discuss Contemporary Research on Private Psychiatry and Psychological Services. Speakers: Associate Professor Jeffrey Looi Associate Professor Jeffrey Looi, MBBS Syd, MD ANU, DMedSc Melb, FRANZCP, AFRACMA, is a clinical academic neuropsychiatrist, in private and public practice, and Head of the Academic Unit of...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Dr Salam Hussain and Professor Paul Fitzgerald discuss Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation. Speakers: Dr Salam Hussain Salam Hussain is a Consultant Psychiatrist at the Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital (SCGH), in the area of Consultation Liaison Psychiatry, Emergency Psychiatry, and a Lead Clinician for the Neuromodulation unit at the SCGH Day Procedure Unit. Adjunct S...

In this episode of Psych Matters, Associate Professor Jeffrey Looi and his guests discuss a day in the life of private practice. Speakers: Associate Professor Jeffrey Looi Dr Michelle Atchison Dr Gary Galambos Links: Private psychiatry in Australia: reflections on career opportunities, benefits, and challenges https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1039856220978856 RANZCP Section of Private...