Forensic Psychiatry
The Institute of Mental Health (IMH) in Nottingham is one of the UK’s leading interdisciplinary mental health research institutes. The IMH is a part of the University of Nottingham Precision Imaging Beacon, where mental health is one of the main themes and which uses state-of-the-art imaging in fMRI, MEG, and MRS. The IMH houses an EEG laboratory equipped for whole brain mapping, along with a range of neuromodulation and digital assessment equipment.
Research opportunities
- The Forensic Research Nottingham (FRN) research group include academics in multiple related fields including neuroscience, criminology, health and justice, and human rights, with expertise in Violence Reduction Units research and links to the Criminal Justice System, as well as clinicians working in forensic settings. Current research focus on the neuroscience of ASPD and psychopathy, risk assessment in forensic settings, forensic learning disability, neurodevelopmental disorders, female forensic services, and prison psychiatry interventions.
- Mental Health and Technology is a core theme in the Nottingham NIHR Biomedical Research Centre. There is expertise in transcranial magnetic stimulation and other neuromodulation, MRI, EEG, MEG and magnetic spectroscopy, informatics, virtual reality sensing, to develop novel therapeutic interventions, explore underlying disease mechanisms and large scale epidemiological studies.
- Neurobiological research opportunities in forensic psychiatry. For example, the University of Nottingham’s cutting-edge 7T MRI scanner and ground-breaking ‘Wearable’ MEG scanner (OPM-MEG) offers an ideal opportunity to develop a forensic Neuroimaging project, including pharmacoimaging and experimental medicine study design (Dr John Tully, Clinical Associate Professor in Forensic Psychiatry).
- Development and/or validation of prediction model approaches, and their stepwise clinical translation into intervention pathways for reducing adverse outcomes in forensic and general psychiatric settings (Dr Daniel Whiting, Clinical Associate Professor in Forensic Psychiatry).
- Clinical research options in the national high secure forensic service (Rampton Hospital). The Rampton hospital provides unique national services in high secure female and high secure learning disability psychiatry. It is a part of the national High Secure forensic register across the four UK high secure hospitals.
- Offender (prison) mental health: evaluation of novel forensic risk assessment tools (OxRisk), ADHD research in prisons, and evaluation of the newly developed neurodevelopmental service in offender health.
Current research projects
Current research grants are funded by the NIHR, research councils (MRC, ESRC), European Union and industry. They include:
- Forensic neuroscience pharmacoimaging (Dr John Tully)
- SAFERAP (evaluating the OxRisk tools in a UK prison service)
- ENHANCE project (what works in older forensic patients)
More information
More information about academic Forensic Psychiatry is available on the IMH website. You may contact the Academic Programme Director for Psychiatry, Dr Anto Rajamani, for further details.
Contact Anto Rajamani