Meet our peopleAcross Surrey and Borders Partnership, our colleagues bring care, creativity and commitment to everything they do.
In these stories, they share what their roles involve and what a typical day looks like, offering a real glimpse into the work we do and the people who make it happen.
Meet Josie, Consultant Psychiatrist for Older People
It’s very rewarding to be able to help in that moment. I also love supervising resident doctors and helping them to develop their skills.
I’m a Consultant Psychiatrist for Older People with the Psychiatric Liaison Service at Ashford and St Peter’s Hospital. I support people aged 65 and over, as well as younger people with dementia, who are at the general hospital and require mental health care. This includes people presenting with a wide range of issues such as psychosis, depression, delirium (acute confusion), and those experiencing dementia-related crises.
We also see people who have significant mental health needs while being treated for physical health problems. In addition to A&E referrals, we support people on the wards who either have a pre-existing mental health condition or develop new symptoms during their hospital stay.
Alongside this, I’m also Deputy Director for the Research and Development Department, helping to deliver research across the trust, working on several studies and supporting the day-to-day running of the team. I also lead my own research project focusing on delirium.
There isn’t ever a typical day! For example, one day last week I was based in the hospital attending a management meeting and then reviewing people on the wards, both on my own and jointly with other teams like the dementia service; I was also supervising nursing and resident doctor colleagues. Then the next day was more research-focused, with meetings about upcoming studies and supervision of research doctors.
My weeks are usually a mix of clinical and management meetings, face-to-face clinical work, educational supervision and research tasks.
The people I support. Most of the people I see are facing complex problems during an extremely stressful time in their lives. Being in the acute hospital can be a pivotal moment for them. Our team is well placed to step in and help, whether that’s providing immediate support or helping get their longer-term care heading in the right direction. It’s very rewarding to be able to help in that moment. I also love supervising resident doctors and helping them to develop their skills.
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