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Biography
Dr. Matt Horrocks is an Assistant Professor of Mental Health and Psychological Therapies, in the School of Health Sciences.
Matt joined the School of Health Sciences in June 2021, after previous roles at Nottingham Trent University (Division of Psychology), University of Nottingham (School of Community Health Sciences, and School of Medicine) and local NHS services.
Matt provides teaching, tutorial support and research supervision, working with students and colleagues involved in the MSc / PgDip in Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy (CBT), the Health Sciences Foundation programme, and mental health nursing courses. Matt is also a Schwartz round facilitator working with colleagues in the School of Health Sciences and across the faculty of Medicine and Heath Sciences with the Centre for Interprofessional Learning and Education
Matt is a chartered (academic) Psychologist with the British Psychological Society (BPS), an accredited Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist with the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP), and a registered Person-Centred Counsellor with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).
Matt has a BSc (Hons) in Psychology and Management from the University of Leeds, a Post Gradaute Diploma in Health Services Research, an MSc in Rehabilitation and a PhD in Health Sciences from the University of Nottingham. He also holds an undergraduate Diploma in Humanistic Counseling Practice from the University of Nottingham and a Postgraduate Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy from the University of Derby.
Matt currently maintains clinical practice as a psychological therapist working in a national primary care mental health service. Prior to this, Matt worked for over 20 years in NHS mental health services, including roles in primary care psychological therapies, psychosocial rehabilitation, continuing care, community forensic and specialist psychological trauma services. Matt worked for 12 years in an NHS primary care psychological therapies service (IAPT) providing formulation driven and manualised Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) to adult and older adult clients experiencing mild to moderate levels of psychological distress.
Matt has also worked in research roles: As a Clinical Studies Officer with the NIHR Mental Health Research Network, Matt assisted national and international research studies to gain ethical and research governance approvals, to recruit participants, and to disseminate results within NHS services. As a research associate with NIHR CLAHRC East Midlands, Matt worked on the Return to Work after Stroke study. He has also previously undertaken temporary research roles supporting the Cochrane Schizophrenia, and Forensic mental health research groups, within the Division of Psychiatry.
In 2022, Matt completed his PhD. Matt's PhD research was funded by CLAHRC East Midlands and the East Midlands Patient Safety Collaborative; to design an electronic Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS), to aid General Practitioner (GP) decision-making during primary care consultations with people presenting with potential risk of suicide. The research employed a mixed-methods design guided by the underlying meta-theory of applied critical realism. Empirical studies undertaken within the thesis included interviews with GPs, facilitation of lived experience consultation groups, a group consensus exercise and usability testing of the prototype CDSS.
Teaching Summary
Matt passionately believes that higher education can be transformative for individuals and the wider society in which we live.
Matt teaches on the school's Foundation in Health Sciences, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Mental Health nursing provision, with a strong emphasis on applied clinical practice across a range of modules.
Matt is the module convenor for Cognitive and Behavioural Therapy for Anxiety Disorders and Depression 2: Complexity, within the Cognitive Behavioural Therapy MSc/PGDip and co-convenor for Foundations of Health Psychology within the Health Sciences Foundation programme.
Research Summary
Matt's research interests include clinical decision-making, suicide prevention, social justice interventions, and qualitative studies of client and practitioner experiences of psychological therapy.
Matt supervises student dissertations on the MSc in Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy and the mental health pathways of the BSc Nursing, and MSc GEN programmes.
Matt currently provides doctoral supervision on a Universities for Nottingham Co(l)laboratory funded studentship, working with Professor Clifford Stevenson, colleagues at Harmless and the Tomorrow Project and Postgraduate research student Lauren Sheriff.
Matt is interested in providing co-supervision to PhD students undertaking applied interdisciplinary research in Health Sciences.
Matt's expertise and experience aligns across the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (Health Sciences, Medicine, Midwifery and Nursing), the Centre for Health Innovation Leadership and Learning (CHILL) within the Business School and in relation to Counselling and associated research within the School of Education.