In the Research and Education news... Excellence for Innovation The Institute of Institute of Mental Health Mental Health seeks In this issue... to help transform announces collaboration with the understanding • New study awarded and treatment World Health Organization grant to investigate of mental illness. the urge to tic The Centre for Mental Health and Human Rights at the Institute of Mental • Key ethical questions We are a partnership Health has been designated as a new World Health Organization (WHO) for research during between two highly collaborating centre on Mental Health, Disability and Human Rights. COVID-19 respected organisations, Nottinghamshire Under the joint directorship of Professors Martin Orrell (Director, Institute of Mental Health) • Digital technology and Peter Bartlett (Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Professor of Mental could help youth mental Healthcare NHS Health Law), the designation begins in April 2020 for a four-year term (which can be renewed). Foundation Trust health crisis This new collaborative partnership will utilise the and The University knowledge and expertise of the members of the Institute • Aggression and brain of Nottingham. of Mental Health’s Centre for Mental Health and Human injury review wins Rights to support the development and understanding international journal of this area within the WHO’s policy, education, legal and advocacy programmes. prize Continued on page 2 • Call for submissions: exhibition for young artists exploring mental health 01 @InstituteMH www.institutemh.org.uk May 2020 Continued from page 1 Welcome Over the next four years the new Mental Health, Disability and Human Rights collaborating centre will: Our May newsletter shares updates and achievements from across • Assist WHO in assessing the • Work with WHO in the development effectiveness and impact of WHO of best practice guidance related to the Institute of Mental Health and education programmes relating to topics in mental health and human showcases the best in mental mental health and human rights, rights – in particular services and in particular related to the WHO’s supports that promote recovery health research. QualityRights training programmes. and human rights for people with dementia in line with UN Convention • Assist the development, for the Rights of Persons with maintenance and promotion of WHO Professor Martin Orrell Disabilities (CRPD). Director, The Institute of Mental Health resources relating to mental health and human rights – most notably • Work under the guidance of WHO, the WHO’s MiNDBank web resource provide advice on legal structures, of laws and official policies relating mental health/disability law, human The research world is now a very different The exhibition received a lot of media to all aspects of mental health and rights both generally and in the place as we find ourselves adapting to life coverage, and featured on BBC Radio mental disability. specific context of dementia and also under lockdown. As the vast majority of 4’s Today Programme, The Independent, to assist WHO with capacity building. our research activities have been paused BBC East Midlands Today and BBC Radio and our busy events programme has been Derby. suspended, this edition of our newsletter For the safety of our colleagues and is a little different, but I’m pleased to be Professor Peter Bartlett said Michelle Funk, Unit Head for Policy, visitors our building remains shut for the able to share a round-up of some positive of the designation: Law and Human Rights, Dept of Mental foreseeable future, but you can read all Health and Substance Use at the research news in these challenging times. “Events of the last weeks have our latest announcements and news by World Health Organization commented: We were delighted to receive the news visiting our website institutemh.org.uk highlighted the importance of WHO as the primary body that our Centre for Mental Health and or following us on Twitter @InstituteMH. “We are excited to embark on this for promotion of health collaboration with the Institute Human Rights has now been designated A heartfelt thank you to everyone who internationally. The current of Mental Health. The wealth of a World Health Organization Collaborating has supported the Institute and our work global emergency highlights the expertise and experience that they Centre. This recognises the importance over the last few weeks, and to our NHS importance of a voice for human bring make them an ideal partner in that the WHO places on the expertise and rights and for people experiencing colleagues who are working tirelessly to promoting access to good quality skills of our centre of excellence and mental health problems. This has care, services and supports and keep us all safe and well. its work. never been more important. We respect for the rights of people Stay home, save lives. are proud to stand with the WHO with psychosocial, cognitive and On page 6 we describe how International in this mission.” intellectual disabilities in countries Nurses Day on 12 May was marked by across the world.” a new digital exhibition led by Prof Paul Crawford (Centre for Social Futures) launched to commemorate 200 years since the birth of Florence Nightingale. Click here for more information: www.institutemh.org.uk 02 @InstituteMH www.institutemh.org.uk Key ethical questions for research during the COVID-19 pandemic As new COVID-19 related research projects progress at speed, it is important that they are done so with the same thought and consideration for participants as we would normally provide. Ellen Townsend (Professor in the School of Psychology and Institute of Mental Health) and colleagues PsychStart founders, student-led committee members and Dr Derek Tracy (centre). from the self-harm research group (Emma Nielsen, Sarah Cassidy and Rosie Allister) expressed their concern in an open access Lancet Psychiatry article earlier this week, encouraging researchers to conduct ethically sound studies. The group explained the need to write the article: PsychStart awards “We wrote this piece as we had to think carefully Dr Tom Hewson and Dr Nikki Thomas and Since its inception two years ago, over 100 about the work we are currently doing and whether the student PsychStart committee hosted the medical students have passed through the it was reasonable and safe to continue it during the second PsychStart annual awards evening PsychStart scheme and there are currently pandemic. Some studies we have had to pause. in March this year. The event was sponsored 66 active mentoring relationships. Demand We work closely with people with lived experience by the Institute of Mental Health, along with for mentoring in psychiatry is increasing, with so felt confident that we were doing the right thing Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation over 20 students on the reserve list waiting for for our work. Trust and University of Nottingham Cascade. mentors. Impressively, over 90% of mentees rate their experience on the PsychStart scheme as “Then we started noticing the huge volume of The prestigious ceremony took place at the good or excellent and a third of students state surveys and studies being promoted online on the University of Nottingham and was attended it has increased their interesting in pursuing impact of COVID-19. Many of these studies seemed by over 50 mentors and mentees. Special careers in psychiatry. The scheme has rapidly quite worrying in their lack of support or mitigation guests included Dr John Brewin (Chief expanded to three other medical schools and of the impact that taking part in them might have Executive Nottinghamshire Healthcare continues to attract national attention and on participants. We hope that the article will help NHS Foundation Trust) and Dr Derek Tracy recognition. people review work that they are considering doing, (RCPsych Communicator of the Year). ensuring a clear pathway to impact and involving For all the latest updates on PsychStart people with lived experience in a meaningful way.” follow them on Twitter: @Psych_Start 03 @InstituteMH www.institutemh.org.uk Centre for ADHD and Neurodevelopmental New study awarded grant Disorders (CANDAL) to investigate the urge to tic The Medical Research Council have awarded a grant of £527,000 to Professor Georgina Jackson (Institute of Mental Health and University of New ADHD eye resting-state data Nottingham, School of Medicine), Professor Stephen Jackson (University of Nottingham School of Psychology), and Matthew Brookes, Penny Gowland, published in Brain Sciences journal and Richard Bowtell (all University of Nottingham School of Physics and Astronomy) to develop novel neuroimaging approaches to investigate the A new paper has been published by Alessio Bellato and colleagues from the functional anatomy and physical processes that contribute to the urge to tic in Institute of Mental Health in the special issue ‘New Advances in Attention Tourette Syndrome. Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)’ of the journal ‘Brain Sciences’. The new MRC-funded project will investigate a more accurate and reliable The authors investigated brain activity in children with ADHD and Autism, way to identify functional brain activity that is associated with the occurrence during a resting-state session which included an eyes-closed and an eyes- of premonitory urges in circumstances where tics are effectively suppressed open condition. The results of the study indicate that both children with ADHD (i.e. there is no tic to use as an external timing event). A key focus of the and Autism might experience difficulties in filtering sensory information at rest, study will be to investigate the relationship between the parts of the brain that however children with ADHD might show this difficulty especially during eyes- generate the urge-for-action, with those involved in initiating action. closed resting-state. The authors have proposed to create a shared database of resting-state EEG Find out more: data collected in individuals with different psychological, psychiatric and www.institutemh.org.uk neurodevelopmental conditions, including ADHD and autism (see osf.io/azkhs if interested).