New and emerging treatments in psychiatry

About the course

As our understanding of the causes of mental illness has developed, a growing number of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions have shown potential as novel treatments. While some of these remain experimental, others are emerging into routine clinical practice in the UK and around the world.

Drawing on recent exciting research findings, many of these interventions shine a new light on the causes and pathologies associated with psychiatric illnesses and are paving the way towards the future of psychiatry. From psychedelics to gut microbiome, this two-day course will introduce clinicians to the major new interventions with strong or promising clinical evidence. Learners will become familiar with the sorts of treatments currently available through either clinical or research pathways and be able to recommend these to their patients where appropriate. Each session will be taught by well-known academic and clinical experts from the IoPPN/Maudsley who work at the frontier of mental health research including Prof Allan Young (KCL Chair of Mood Disorders) and Prof David Veale (director of the Maudsley national service for OCD and related disorders).

This course will cover topics such as psilocybin, ketamine, MDMA, cannabis, transcranial magnetic stimulation, triple chronotherapy, and gut microbiome.

An interview with Dr James Rucker:

Day 1 schedule

9:00-9:30 Arrival, tea, coffee and biscuits
9:30-10:00 Overview
10:00-10:45 The Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation clinic at Oxleas NHS Trust. Experience of delivery and mechanisms.
10:45-11:30 Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Functional Neurological Disorders. Mechanisms and Clinic Utility.
11:30-11:45 Coffee Break
11:45-12:30 Triple chronotherapy for resistant depression.
12:30-13:00 Panel and audience discussion: TMS and triple chronotherapy.
13:00-14:00 Lunch
14:00-14:45 Cannabis prescribing in the UK: experience from the first CQC-approved clinic in the UK
14:45-15:30 Influencing the microbiome to treat psychiatric disorders
15:30-16:15 MDMA for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder – an overview of current clinical trials
16:15-16:45 Panel and audience discussion: Cannabis, the microbiome and MDMA for PTSD
16:45 Close

Day 2 schedule 

9:00-9:30 Arrival, tea, coffee and biscuits
9:30-10:15 Classical psychedelics in the treatment of psychiatric disorders: an introduction
10:15-11:00 Psilocybin trials at King’s College London
11:00-11:30 Coffee Break
11:30-12:15 Therapeutic models of psychological support in psilocybin therapy.
12:15-13:00 Panel and audience discussion: psilocybin therapy
13:00-14:00 Lunch
14:00-14:45 Clinical use of ketamine in mood disorders
14:45-15:30 Ketamine therapy at the Maudsley Advanced Treatment Service (MATS).
15:30-16:00 Panel and audience discussion: ketamine therapy in psychiatry
16:00 Closing comments