IMHCN Contributors

These people have contributed to the development of the IMHCN across the world. They are part of IMHCN and help to promote our work by sharing their experience and knowledge of de-institionalisation practices and the whole life whole system approach.

Click on the name to read more about them, their interests and work.


 

A - Z Contributors

Kathleen Aitken (England)
Mina Aleksic (Serbia)
Ivona Amleh (Palestine)
Victor Aparicio (Spain)
Abdul Abu Bakar (Malaysia)
Paul Baker (England)
Dr Alison Battersby (England)
Lily Bidmead (Wales)Regina Bisikiewicz (Poland)
Jan Berndsen (Netherlands)
Renzo Bonn (Italy)
Andrew Boxall (England)
Pat Bracken (Ireland)
Hannah Buck (Wales)
Michaela Burt (England)
Tom Cahill (England)
Liz Carrol (Wales)
Roberta Casadio (italy)
Sudipto Chatterjee (India)
Phil Chick (Wales)
Felicia Ciobanu (Romania)
Sharon Claridge (England)
Phillip Confue (England)
Dirk Corstens (Netherlands)
Ingrid Daniels (South Africa)
Angie Darlington (Wales)
Larry Davidson (USA)
Diane Davies (Wales)
Hywel Davies (Wales)
Terry Davies (Wales)
Nicolas Daumerie (France)
Peppe Dellacqua (Italy)
Nicola Delliquadri (Italy)
Julie Denley (Wales)
Nicola Derrick (Wales)James Duncan (England)
Anne Easter (England)
J¯rn Eriksen (Denmark)
Tijana Eror (Serbia)
Clayton Ezequiel dos Santos (Brazil)
Sinead Fallon (Ireland)
Margaret Fleming (Ireland)
Aileen Flynn (Wales)
Tony Gardner (Portugal)
Stewart Gee (England)
Robert Goodwin (Wales)
Amanda Hall (Wales)
Siti Hazrah (Malaysia)
John Jenkins (Wales)
Richard Jones (Wales)
Vladimir Jovic (Serbia)
Vaidyanathan Kalyanasundaram (Australia)
Irini Karavalaki (Italy)
Linda Keelan (Wales)
Rene Keet (Netherlands)
Rosaline Keenan (Ireland)Tim Kendrick (England)
Devora Kestel (USA)
Brent Kilmurray (England)
David King
Leo Kinsella (Ireland)
Philip Kloer (Wales)
Samantha Korak (Wales)
Mia Kurtti (Finland)
Patrick le Cardinal (France)
Norman Lamb (England)
Warren Lloyd (Wales)
Eleanor Longden (England)
Marcelino Lopez (Spain)
Marcello Macario (Italy)
Salifu Manneh (England/Gambia)
Anne Markwick (England)Lenka Masinova (Czech Republic)
Dave McAuley (England)
Celice McDermott
Peter McGeorge (Australia)
Theodoros Megaloecononomou (Greece)
Margaret Meleady (Wales)
Roberto Mezzina (Italy)
Sara Mitchell (England)
John Murphy (Ireland)
Fabio Musco (Italy)
Robin Murray (England)Jonathan Newnes (England)Andrew Nicholls (England)
Maggie Nichols (Wales)
Chis O'Connor (Wales)
Mary O Hagan (New Zealand)
Bodil Oster (Denmark)
Alexandru Paziuc (Romania)
Nick Pennell (England)
Jan Pfeiffer (Czech Republic)
Pino Pini (Italy)
Bobby Pratap (England)
Fabio Pittuco (Sweden)
Dainius Puras (Lithuania)
Pina Ridente (Italy)
Paul Roberts (Wales)
Jean-Luc Roelandt (France)Gabriele Rocca (Italy)
Marius Romme (Netherlands)
Alan Rosen (Australia)
Lear Rothwell (England)
Franco Rotelli (Italy)
Dr. Susan Ruggeri (England)
Alison Ryan (England)
Libby Ryan Davies (England)
Rossana Maria Seabra Sade (Brazil)
Alberto Salmoiraghi (Wales)
Mark Sampson (England)
Ana Esther Sanchez
Michele Sipala (Italy)
Jonathan Sherin (USA)
Dyaa Saymad (Palestine)
Donna Sharp (Wales)
David Shiers (England)
Mike Smith (England)
Daniela Speh (Italy)
Sarah Stanyon (Wales)Fabrizio Starace (Italy)
Rajiah Abu Sway (Palestine)
Karen Taylor (Herts, England)
ThaÌs Thom (Brazil)
Alain Topor (Sweden)
Gill Thornton (Wales)
John Trevains (England)
Rachel Waddingham (England)
Benna Waites (Wales)
Stephen Wright (England)
Kathryn Walters (Wales)
Rob Warriner (New Zealand)
Clarissa Webster (Brazil)
Jayne Whitney (Wales)
Carly Williams (Wales)
John Wilson (Scotland)
Jan Woodward (England)
Pablo Valente (Brazil)
Ernesto Venturini (Italy)
Tomas Vicek (Czech Republic)

Kathleen Aitken

Country: England

Background: Kathleen Aitken taught Infants 1964-1972 and then having specialized in dyslexia she ran a Reading Clinic 1972-75 in a unit managed by an Educational Psychologist. Following a break at home with her children, she worked in a Secondary School with pupils who had severe reading problems 1984-1991. During her teaching career Kathleenís became increasingly aware of how emotional problems can impact on learning and also of the ripple effect this can have on families.
In 1991 Kathleen changed careers to set up and manage Swindon Mind, a mental health Charity. Advocacy and successful campaigning were at the heart of the Mind services and over 20 years many issues of concern were highlighted. Kathleen and the Mind staff worked regularly with service users and others to find solutions. They found that an open process with proper consultation was the key to successful outcomes.
While at Mind, Kathleen had ongoing discussions with a group of mental health workers from other organizations about how services could be delivered in a more integrated and holistic way. The result was that before she retired from Mind in 2012, the group decided to set up a health and wellbeing Charity, called Horizons, with Kathleen as Chair. Horizons is now working in Eldene, a small area in Swindon, hearing from residents about which additional community facilities, services and support would make a difference to their wellbeing and also considering with them how these could be developed.
In January 2015 IMHCN facilitated a Workshop for Horizons in Eldene, to identify the priorities for change. This will be followed up with a Learning Set, which will explore, in more depth, the way forward with stakeholders.

Interests: Community development and support, wellbeing

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Mina Aleksic

Country: Serbia

Background: Mina is the Project coordinator of Prostor. She is an art therapist. She is actively promoting Art therapy in Serbia, using its methods for social action and fighting for human rights of vulnerable populations (psychiatric care beneficiaries, street children, women victims of human trafficking) through direct work with the beneficiaries and rising public awareness through art within NGO Prostor. Mina is the president of NGO Prostor and is responsible for coordinating projects and Art therapy workshops, administration, communication and public relations.
She also has a first level Hatha Yoga instructor certificate and two-year certificate in Body psychotherapy.

Interests: hearing voices approach, empowerment and human rights, community development, art therapy

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Ivona Amleh

Country: Bethlehem Psychiatric Hospital, West Bank, Palestine

Background: Ivona is a senior psychiatrist and the acting medical director of Bethlehem Psychiatric Hospital in Palestine.
She was born in Croatia, where she lived and completed her basic professional formation at the University hospital 'Rebro' in Zagreb and its Institutes for Psychological Medicine and Group Analysis, respectively.
Following her marriage to a Palestinian colleague, she made a major switch in her life by moving from her native Adriatic sea to the Eastern part of the Mediterranean, finding there a new soil for her personal and professional growth.
At the teaching hospital where she has been working since 1999 and which is the only psychiatric in-patient facility in Palestine, she is keen on exchanging knowledge, skills, respect and understanding.
She likes being a mediator between different attitudes, ideas and voices, enjoys connecting with people on a few languages, and keeps believing that it is still not to late to mend this world.

Interests:

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Victor Aparicio

Country: Spain

Background: Victor was Head of mental health services in a General Hospital (2013-2014) in Asturias from 2013 - 14. Before this he was working in America as Mental Health Advisor for the Pan American Health Organisation and the WHO in Central America, Hispanic Caribbean and MÈxico. He worked in Oviedo Psychiatric Hospital from 1983-1987 as the Director) charged with the responsibility for the deinstitutionalitation process. Between 1988-1991 he was Director of mental health services in the Asturias Region.

Interests: Deinstitionalisation

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Paul Baker

Country: England

Background: Community development worker, co-founder Hearing Voices Network England. Paul Baker is a community development and group worker. He has a Post-graduate Diploma in Community Education, specialising in working with young people and people with mental health problems. Paul has worked in the health care and education sectors for the last 30 years. He had the responsibility for developing innovative mental health care services in the community. These include services run by the people who use them, self-advocacy services, supported housing services, social firms and enterprises as well as the development of forums for people to enable them to have a direct input in the development and running of services. For fifteen years Paul was the chairperson of a large housing association for homeless people in Manchester.
Paul was one of the founding members of the Hearing Voices Network in England and is currently the coordinator of INTERVOICE, the influential coordinating body for the international hearing voices movement. He also specialises in assisting organisations in harnessing and developing online communities to complement and support their work. Most recently Paul has worked with the Mental Health Foundation, Working to Recovery, Radish Online Ltd, the Scottish Hearing Voices Network.
He has a special interest in working with groups of people to find ways of help themselves overcome difficulties and problems. He also has a strong commitment to forging international partnerships in the development of progressive and effective mental health services.
Paul has published books and written chapters and articles for many publications on mental health issues. He provides consultancy services, lectures and trains on empowerment and recovery issues and the relationships these have to effective mental health service delivery.

Interests: Hearing voices e.g. setting up and running hearing voices groups; community development and mental health.

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Abdul Abu Bakar

Country: Malaysia

Background: Dr Abdul Kadir Abu Bakar is the Medical Director and psychiatrist at Permai Hospital, Permai Jalan, Johor Bahru, one of the four mental hospitals in Malaysia.
His interests include evidence based rehabilitation in psychiatry especially supported employment and working with families. Implementing recovery-oriented services with patientsí led social enterprises and patient empowerment program.
Currently he is he President of Malaysian Psychiatric Association and Advisor to MINDA Malaysia (Family support group movement of Malaysia)He has special interest in Community and Liaison Psychiatry and has developed community-based services in several areas in Malaysia.
He graduated as a medical doctor from Egypt and worked in Malaysia where he obtained specialty training in psychiatry. He had also spent some time working in a home treatment team in Birmingham, UK. He also lectures to medical students of Monash University in Johor Bahru and at NUMED(Newcastle University).
He is a local supervisor for the psychiatry training programme for the Master of Medicine (Psychiatry). He has special interest in developing evidence based community psychiatry services and has spearheaded the setting up of several ACT and home treatment teams in Malaysia. He has also pioneered supported employment programme in Malaysia and is now working with patients to set up social enterprises. He has set up the national family support group movement of which he is the advisor. His current interest is working with volunteers to help deliver mental health care to people who has difficulties accessing mainstream mental health care. He is the current President of The Malaysian Psychiatric Association.

Interests: Social Enterprises, hospital closure and replacement,home treatment, family support and involvement

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Carlotta Baldi

Country: Italy

Background:

Interests:

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Lily Bidmead

Country: Wales

Background: Lilly is a member of the Swansea Patients Council, she organises the World Mental Health Day, an awareness raising event which promotes open discussion around mental health issues, regarding prevention, promotion, advice, support and treatment. This is held annually in Swansea. She is a family member.

Interests: She is committed to mental heath whole life and recovery, the active participation of families, advocacy and human rights.

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Renzo Bonn

Country: Italy

Background: Consultant psychiatrist

Renzo Bonn is a psychiatrist working in Udini, Italy. In the University years he was particularly involved in phenomenological approach in mental health, specially related with Basaglia ífirst experiences. He worked for a long period in Trieste Mental Health Services (1982 ñ 1999), in the last years as Director of a 24 hours Mental Health Centre. During this period he worked often in services in critical situation because of relevant change in their organization. From year 2000 in the Udine Mental Health Services, as Director of a 24 hours M.H.C. He had a 15 yearsí experience in the Juvenile Court in Trieste as expert judge. He had many experiences during the war in former Yugoslavia: in 1993 for six months he was project manager for an humanitarian project in the Bosnian area of Brcko (targeted on mental health of vulnerable groups); in 1994 started a collaboration with WHO as MH consultant; from 1994 to 2000 he was involved in many short missions (training and needs assessment) in different areas (Mostar, Vukovar, Kotor,Beograd, Kosovo and Albania) an in 1998 for one year was project manager for a WHO project targeted in the implementation of 9 community Based Mental Health Services in BiH (Federation and Republika Srpska); as WHO consultant in the period 2001 ñ 2008 he was involved in several short missions in OPT (Jerusalem, Gaza, Hebron, Bethlehem, Tulkarem, Ramallah) for needs assessment and (mainly) for training of MH workers. From year 2003 he is lecturer of Social Psychiatry in the Specialization School for Psychiatrist in the Medicine Faculty in Udine.

In this last years, with the medical responsible of the Police in Udine, he developed an experience targeted in managing stress and suicide problems in policemen.

Interests: He is particularly interested in team working and in team rebuilding for new operational contexts

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Andrew Boxall

Country: England

Background: Andrew is a social inclusion worker, Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. Andrew is a Social Inclusion worker who has been working on Bowman Ward in Cornwall for nearly 2 years. He also has experience of working in New Zealand for a short period of time within community teams. His main passions are sport and the outdoors and he tries to pass the attributes gained through these activities onto others to help them improve their confidence, social skills and wellbeing. He has a degree in sport and exercise science and tries to bring some of the physical health knowledge into practice with the individuals he works with. The job role is exciting and extremely varied requiring high levels of motivational skills and patience.

Interests: Sport, Inclusion and Wellbeing

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Pat Bracken

Country: Ireland

Background: Pat is a Professor of Psychiatry from Cork, Ireland. He is currently Clinical Director of the Mental Health Service in West Cork, Ireland. He trained in medicine and psychiatry in Ireland and the UK. In the 1980s he worked for 3 years with victims of torture and violence in Uganda, East Africa. This experience had a profound effect on his understanding of mental health problems and the nature of healing. He has also worked for shorter periods in other developing countries in Africa and Asia.
Along the way, he took the time to train in philosophy and in his writing he has tried to bring philosophical insights to bear on some of the problems we face in the area of mental health. He was Professor of Philosophy, Diversity and Mental Health at the University of Central Lancashire in the years 2006-2008.
Pat was one of the founders of the UK Critical Psychiatry Network.
He was co-editor of the book Rethinking the Trauma of War with Dr Celia Petty, published in 1998. His own book Trauma: Culture, Meaning and Philosophy was published in 2002. With Prof Phil Thomas, he published the book Post-psychiatry: A New Direction for Mental Health in 2005.

Interests: Interests include collaborating with user/survivors, developing critical thinking in psychiatry and working with asylum seekers and refugees

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Hannah Buck

Country: Wales

Background: Hannah is the Health and Recreation Policy Officer, Pembrokeshire National Park Authority. She joined the Pembrokeshire National Park Authority just over two years ago in a new role as the Health, Recreation and Tourism Policy Officer. Her role includes supporting projects on the ground as well as developing the Authorities approach to health, wellbeing and social inclusion. The National Park is a major part of the local geographic and economic landscape. Pembrokeshire Coast National Park is a forward thinking organisation that extends its reach beyond that of being a haven for nature; a destination for tourists, a local resource for outdoor recreation and into the deeper aspects of health and well-being benefits.
She has over 20 years experience working with individuals, families and communities in a range of services in statutory and non-statutory arenas.
Hannah's work has included supporting children with emotional, social and behavioural difficulties in schools, working with refugee and migrant families in the North East of England, developing children and young people strategies in Kent, and working in hospital and community settings as in health and social care. Involvement in new and developing services has been a recurring theme in my work; from ëpeer led theatre in youth workí at the very start of my career to my current role in policy. She has delivered services directly to beneficiaries and have been involved in the strategic planning, commissioning and project management of provision in a range of environments including education, health, and community based work.
She has a BA in Social Policy and Sociology and an MSc in Occupational Therapy. She also has additional qualifications and training in Conflict Resolution and Community Cohesion, Coaching and Mentoring, Therapeutic Group work, and Youth Work

Interests: Wellbeing, inclusion and using natural resources.

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Michaela Burt

Country: UK

Background: Michaela is an Registered Mental Health Nurse with a BSC in Professional Health Studies. She is a Clinical Manager for Low secure, PICU and recovery services in Cornwall, Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.
Michaela has 29 years experience of working within Mental health services in a variety of inpatient settings and in the community. She specialised in Rehabilitation & Recovery soon after qualifying in 1989 and is currently Clinical Manager for Low secure, PICU and recovery services in Cornwall.
Michaela is committed to the whole life values and principles and treating the person as a whole. Since 2004 she has been the Whole Life Lead for Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and has implemented the Whole Life /Recovery principles into her work on the Low secure unit.
Michaela has represented her organisation through the IMHCN in both Palestine and Trieste, working with staff on areas of Recovery and Co authored a book 'Different only by Degrees' with Dr John Little - General Consultant Psychiatrist, which looked at all aspects of working and Living in A Low secure Environment.

Interests: Forensic services

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Tom Cahill

Country: England

Background: Tom is Chief Executive of Hertfordshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and has been in post since April 2009. He previously worked across a number of mental health organisations in the capacity of Director of Nursing, Performance and Strategy. Tom is a qualified mental health nurse and feels this experience enhances his ability to carry out his current role.
Tom is committed to improving services for service users and their carers and has embarked on a major transformation programme in the Trust which is designed to provide better experiences, improved access and a higher quality of service for service users in the long term.

Interests:

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Liz Carrol

Country: Wales

Background: Liz is Interim Deputy Director Mental Health & Learning Disabilities, Hywel Dda University Health Board. Liz is a registered mental health nurse. Primarily her background is in adult services, particularly adult acute services. She has have worked in a variety of roles which cover a range of mental health services both within primary and secondary care. She has a background in driving service changes and introducing innovative and different ways of providing services.

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Roberta Casadio

Country: Italy

Background: Roberta is a psychologist by training. Most recently she has been involved in the planning, development and running of innovatory whole life vrecovery projects in Faenza and Trieste Italy since 2013.

She was the coordinator of the pilot "Recovery House" in Faenza providing a challenging opportunity for twelve people with mental health issues and long term relationships with psychiatric services and their families to commence their recovery journeys by participating in a twelve week residential programme. The project was hosted by Working To Recovery Ltd in collaboration with the local Family Association and with the support of the Regional Mental Health Service.

In 2015 she embarked on a new ongoing Recovery Learning community and Recovery House with the Mental Health Department in Trieste, service users, family members and participating cooperatives. This project is ongoing.

Roberta is a very effective manager who undertakes her responsibilities with dedication and commitment. She shows great empathy and understanding and forms trusting relationships and rapport with the people living in the house, their families and staff. Roberta is an effective manager and administrator ensuring the good running of the house as well as the flexibility to respond to changing circumstances and needs. Her optimism, belief in peoples ability to recover and heal, alongside her positivity and creativity contributed greatly to the atmosphere of mutual support, the sense of shared responsibility and fun that characterises the projects she has been involved in.

Interests: Whole life Recovery, Hearing Voices Approach

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Sudipto Chatterjee

Country: India/Australia

Background: Dr. Sudipto Chatterjee is a psychiatrist who trained at the National Institute of Mental Heath and Neuroscience in Bangalore. Since then he has worked in diverse settings in very low resource settings in India and within public mental health services in high resource settings. His interest is the development, evaluation and scaling up of locally feasible, acceptable and effective services for people with mental disorders, especially for those with severe mental disorders in low resource contexts. In this context, he is currently involved with co-ordinating the COPSI study.

Interests: Development, evaluation and scaling up of locally feasible, acceptable and effective services for people with mental disorders, especially for those with severe mental disorders in low resource contexts.

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Phil Chick

Country: Wales

Background: Phil is the Mental Health Development Lead for Wales at National Leadership and Innovation Agency for Healthcare A qualified social worker with experience in providing managerial and commissioning mental health services in local authority and health authority settings.
He was Director of Mental Health within the Welsh Assembly Government from 2003?2008 advising the Minister and Chief Executive of NHS Wales on mental health matters. He recently transferred with the role into the National Leadership and Innovation Agency for Healthcare. He developed the suicide prevention plan for Wales under the chairmanship of the Chief Medical Officer for Wales. A member of the mental health services review, secure services review and the group developing the mental health strand of the Public Health Strategic Framework.
Previously the chair of the Welsh Assembly Government Cross Government Network on mental health. Undertook a review of the mental health National Service Framework and developed the accompanying national action plan.

Interests:

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Felicia Ciobanu

Country: Romania

Background: Felicia is psychologist and psychotherapist and currently working in the psychiatric hospital ìSocolaî in Iasi. For the last 15 years she has been working to develop supported community homes for people recovering from schizophrenia. This project is run by the foundation ìBrothers of Charityî. Felicia is actively in this project and in using her knowledge and experience on recovery oriented practices in acute settings.

Interests: recovery, community based approach, peer support, mobile team

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Sharon Claridge

Country: England

Background: Sharon is the CEO of Plymouth Mind. She is qualified as an Occupational Therapist and has spent over 30 years working in the NHS before in March 2012 moving to work as Operations Manager at Plymouth Mind. Predominantly her career has been in mental health, working in both clinical and managerial positions. Throughout her career a great motivating has been developing partnerships with other organisations to maximise the positive outcomes for those with whom we work; to make the best use of the skills and organisations in the city and to reduce duplication. She believes that particularly in the delivery of good mental health interventions we need to have a whole system approach to service delivery with recovery principles at the heart of what we do. People are complex and so recovery from mental health issues and the building of resilience is equally as complex and cannot be achieved by one intervention or one service. All aspects are equally important whether it be ensuring that there is someone to look after the dog when needed or having the right support and care during an acute episode. We all have to address all aspects of our lives to ensure we remain mentally healthy and well.
One outcome of this in Plymouth has been the development of the Plymouth Mental Health Network which she was instrumental in setting up with Jane Guy a colleague from Plymouth Citizens Advice Bureau. It was launched in April 2008 with the aim of bringing interested people/organisations across the city together in an informal way to look at how we could ensure that mental health and well-being needs were appropriately addressed and to raise awareness and reduce stigma amongst the population of Plymouth.
We started with around 20 members and now have over 90 covering individuals, those with lived experience, carers and organisations from statutory, third sector and private sectors. I have chaired this network since its inception and proud of the fact that we have successfully been able to brings together all the main players in the city.

Interests:

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Phillip Confue

Country: UK

Background: Chief Operating Officer and Nurse Executive, Cornwall Partnership NHS

Interests: Recovery re. mental health inpatient units, community services, day services and supported housing.

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Dirk Corstens

Country: Netherlands,

Background: Psychiatrist, Chair of INTERVOICE. Dirk has been a social psychiatrist and psychotherapist since 1992. He is educated in cognitive, psychodynamic and systems therapy, Transactional Analysis and Voice Dialogue work. Since 1992, Dirk has been Collaborator in the Hearing Voices Project of the University of Maastricht, with Prof. Marius Romme and Dr Sandra Escher and is closely involved in working with voice hearers. Dirk developed the recovery programme, ëWorking with Voicesí and is currently preparing research on this subject

Interests: Voice dialogue, recovery practice.

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Angie Darlington

Country: Wales

Background: Angie has worked in the health and social care for over 20 years. She has held a number of roles within the voluntary sector, working for Womenís Aid, Housing Associations and charities. Angie has helped to develop mental health services specifically for women across Wales for a housing association, and was the Manager of a Leaving Care Housing Support service for young people aged 16-21years old for a number of years. Angie has worked for West Wales Action for Mental Health for 8 years, first as a Mental Health Development Worker for Carmarthenshire and now as Director of the organisation. Angie is a Mental Health First Aid Trainer and a delivers mental health awareness training for WWAMH across West Wales. During her time at WWAMH Angie has helped to develop a number of projects such as Befriending, Crisis support, self help support groups and mental health resource centres. Angie also has a degree in archaeology, having a lifelong ambition to be Indiana Jones!

Interests:

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Larry Davidson

Country: USA

Background: Larry Davidson, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology and Director of the Program for Recovery and Community Health at the School of Medicine and Institution for Social and Policy Studies of Yale University. His research has focused on processes of recovery in serious mental illnesses and addictions, the development and evaluation of innovative recovery-oriented practices, including peer-delivered supports, and designing and evaluating policies to promote the transformation of behavioral health systems to the provision of recovery-oriented, person-centered, and culturally-responsive care. In addition to being a recipient of psychiatric care, Dr. Davidson has produced over 300 publications, including A Practical Guide to Recovery-Oriented Practice: Tools for Transforming Mental Health Care and The Roots of the Recovery Movement in Psychiatry: Lessons Learned. His work has been influential internationally in shaping the recovery agenda and in operationalizing its implications for transforming behavioral health practice.

Interests: Innovative recovery-oriented practices, including peer-delivered supports.

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Diane Davies

Country: Wales

Background: Dianne has worked in the NHS in Wales and England as a Community Psychiatric Nurse, CMHT Manager and more recently as a clinical service manager in Abertewe Morgannwg University Health Board.

Interests:

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Hywel Davies (1995 - 2020)

Country: Wales

Background: Hywel wass a member of the IMHCN Board. He was a poet, a philanthropist and a mental health activist. He was Chair of Hearing Voices Network Cymru and Patron of Intervoice the international hearing voices organisation.
Educated in Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire and at Stonehouse in Gloucestershire, he is a Combined Honours Graduate of French and Spanish from Birmingham University. He possessed a Postgraduate Certificate in Education from Aberystwyth University.
A retired teacher and lecturer of Spanish, he was labelled by psychiatry as a "schizophrenic" in 1983.
His development of mental health problems as a teacher led eventually to being involved in the mental health voluntary sector as a volunteer in Pembrokeshire and elsewhere. He founded Pembrokeshire Mind, Pembrokeshire Hearing Voices Group and Hearing Voices Network Cymru.
He regarded voice hearers as saints, prophets, shaman, gurus and/or geniuses. Or the potential for such.

Interests: Faith and spirituality, hearing voices, lived experience

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Terry Davies

Country: Wales

Background: Terry Davies has in-depth personal and professional experience of Self Management and Recovery Training. Terry helped develop one of the UKís first self-management programmes for Bipolar UK, he coordinated the NHS Expert Patient Programme in Ceredigion and was a lead facilitator with the Mental Health Foundation running self management courses across South Wales.
He is trained through Lincoln University to deliver training around the New Mental Health Measure. He has his own business providing training and consultancy around Self Management and Recovery of long term health conditions and, in particular, Mental Health and a long established working relationship with West
Wales Action for Mental Health and he is also an Honorary Associate in the College of Human & Health Sciences and an Associate Tutor with the Department of Adult Continuing Education at Swansea University. Terry also teaches on a range of historical topics, including the history of Wales. Terry is in a unique position to be able to provide detailed and impartial advice and information in this area.

Interests: Self Management, Whole Life Recovery, Lived experience

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Nicolas Daumerie

Country: France

Background: Nicolas is a clinical and community psychologist. He works for the Mental Health Public Trust Lille Metropole, France (founder member of IMHCN). He is a consultant and trainer for the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Mental Health (Lille, France). He is a member of the WHO Global Clinical Practice Network. Nicolas is an IMHCN Board Member.

Interests: International networking. Public health. Mental health policies development. Mental health care organisations. Community Mental Health services organisation and development. Social perception of mental health. Stigma and discrimination issues. Mental Health promotion. Recovery and Empowerment approaches and their implementation in France (Recovery oriented services, Users and Carers participation at all level, Peer support).

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Peppe Dellacqua

Country: Italy

Background:

Interests:

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Nicola Delliquadri

Country: Italy

Background:

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Julie Denley

Country: Wales

Background: Julie is the Partnership Lead for Hywel Dda University Health Board. She is a mental health nurse with over 20 years experience of working in the NHS in Wales in both clinically and in more recent years managerially. She has worked in Hywel Dda Health Board for a year and currently holds two portfolios Head of Learning Disability Services and Head of Partnerships. Having redesigned many services. Julie is passionate about ensuring services provide easy access for people experiencing mental health distress and then a timely helpful response. Much of her current work with partners is aimed at further progressing this. Her work includes progressing a yearís ëStreet Triageí pilot with Dyfed Powys Police and other partners to improve the experience and outcomes of people with mental health distress when they come into contact with the Police ñ and - Integrating the ëTime to Changeí Wales Reducing Stigma & Discrimination work across the Health Board and partner agencies. She also Manages the delivery of the Together for Mental Health strategy across the Hywel Dda Partners and progressing co-production and evaluation of services.

Interests: Julie is passionate about ensuring services provide easy access for people experiencing mental health distress and then a timely helpful response.

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Nicola Derrick

Country: Wales

Background:

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Anne Easter

Country: England

Background: Anne worked within the health services 1959-2006 with a break to have a family. While working in the mental health services, having trained in family therapy, it became increasingly obvious that the health care system looked at people in isolation, with a set of symptoms and a label to be treated. This frequently ignored the hidden talent, strengths inner resources and views of the individual. Often vulnerable people were further hindered by this approach. Believing that a whole system approach would be more helpful, it was a delight for Anne to find others in the health and voluntary sectors that agreed with this approach.
After retiring from the secondary mental health service and training to be an Independent Mental Capacity Advocate, the voluntary sector offered Anne the opportunity to join with like-minded people, away from the pressure of a system where the internal power within it, prevented a truly whole system approach. Everyone talked the talk within the health service but actually found it impossible to deliver in practice, because of government targets, and pressures to measure the impossible.
Anne is now a volunteer in a pilot run by Horizons, a health and wellbeing charity. Anne is excited to see if Horizonsí vision and beyond, can cut boundaries, remove barriers and as a result reduce suffering as well as reducing costs. From this, an example of truly holistic, individual community care could emerge using a bottom up approach that harnesses each personís strengths and talents. The result would be that people having a struggle with health, emotional or physical, could be supported mainly within their local community. This would help reduce stigma and aid recovery because integration into mainstream community is often a stumbling block on the recovery road. That block would not exist using this approach and there could therefore be a win/win system

Interests: Whole system approaches

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J¯rn Eriksen

Country: Denmark

Background: Psychiatric nurse manager, trainer, consultant, writer, publisher. J¯rns entire working career has been centred on psychiatry in areas such as social psychiatry, district psychiatry, psychotherapy, alcoholism and adolescent psychiatry.
Heís originally trained as a nurse. Afterwards, he took a diploma in management and a professional diploma in Human Resource Development.
Currently, he is a director of the social psychiatric services in Lyngby ñ taarbÊk municipality. Which include housing, support at home, acute service, self-help groups, supported work, social firms, and educations programs est. The services in Lyngby ñ taarbÊk municipality is in the Danish context a pioneering bid for recovery-oriented work (www.slotsvaenget-ltk.dk).
J¯rn is the initiator of the creation of the Danish Voice Hearers Network, and has been on the board since its inception.He was also in the initiative group who founded the Danish Association for Psychosocial Rehabilitation.
J¯rn was the first Dane to be invited to join International Mental Health Collaborating Network (Whole Life ñ Whole System) and he is now a member of the international advisory board. This network consists of people and organizations who have specific skills in relation to work on recovery processes.
J¯rn has been President and Vice President of the Academic Society of Psychiatric Nurses for 8 years. For 7 years he was a columnist in the magazine nurse, and has regularly written articles for magazines and newspapers.
J¯rn has for many years been a sought after speaker and an active community debater home and abroad in relation to the circumstances of mental health issues. In addition he works as a consultant for institutions wishing to work diligently with recovery processes.

Interests: Hearing voices, recovery, management change

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Tijana Eror

Country: Serbia

Background: Education: Master of Psychology (Faculty of Philosophy, Belgrade 2013); Graduate Psychologist (Faculty of Philosophy, Belgrade 2010). Working experience: International Aid Network IAN - Project coordinator/project manager (2013 ñ present); PR officer (2011 ñ 2013); Project assistant (2010-2011).Mental health projects: Development of integrated mental health and social services for a model region ñ Nis region (2010-2011); Civil Society Campaign for Efficient Protection of Persons with Mental Disorders (2013-2014); Recovery within community ñ Supporting recovery of persons with mental disorders and their full inclusion in the community (2014 ñ present). Participation in trainings and seminars (relevant selection): Psycho-Social Care and Support for Children and Adolescents Infected and/or Affected by HIV&AIDS, The Golda Meir Mount Carmel International Training Center (MCTC), MASHAV and UNAIDS Programme, Israel, 2012; The work of civil society in the field of HIV prevention, European Commission DG Enlargement, PEOPLE 2 PEOPLE PROGRAMME, Brussels, 2011; Monitoring of psychiatric institutions, OSCE Mission to Serbia, Belgrade, 2011; Implementing Commitments to Improve Peoplesí Lives, OSCE Switzerland, OSCE Mission to Serbia and Civic Solidarity, 2014; Deinstitutionalisation through Whole Life-Whole System Development, IMHCN/IAN, 2014; Whole Person,Whole Life-Whole System Approach - Recovery focused Acute and Crisis alternative services including Recovery Houses, IMHCN/IAN, 2014. Study visits: Trieste Mental Health Services/WHO Collaborating Centre ñ Study visit to community mental health services, Trieste, Italy, 2013; Psychotraumacentrum Zuid Nederland ñ Study visit to the centre for psycho-social rehabilitation of trauma victims, s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, 2013.

Interests: Deinstitionalisation, Human Rights, Recovery

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Clayton Ezequiel dos Santos

Country: Brazil

Background: Clayton is a Psychology Doctoral Student at Universidade Estadual Paulista/UNESP (starting in 2013). He has a Masters (2005) and Graduated (2000) in Psychology at the vUniversidade Estadual Paulista/UNESP. He was a lecturer, teacher and supervisor in undergraduate psychology at the University Paulista (UNIP) between 2005 and 2008. He has worked since 2002 in th Health Service "Dr. Candido Ferreira" and managed a Centro de AtenÁ„o Psicossocial ·lcool e outras drogas - CAPS ad (Psychosocial Care Center Alcohol and other drugs) between 2007 and 2012 in Campinas/S„o Paulo. Since 2012 he has managed the network of mental health services of Dr. C‚ndido Ferreira Health Service.

Interests: Psychoanalysis, Psychosocial care, mental health, alcohol and other drugs, public policy, public health and Psychiatric Reform in Brazil.

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John Feneley

Country: Australia

Background: In his professional life as a lawyer, John Feneley was frustrated to see the same disadvantaged people return repeatedly to the criminal justice system, imprisoned and dislocated from friends and family while mental health problems remained unaddressed.
In his private life, Mr Feneley witnessed a family member struggle for many years to find adequate support for a long-term mental illness, in a health system geared mainly to respond to crisis.
Both experiences convinced him that the NSW mental health system needed fundamental overhaul. ìIt was a unique opportunity to help to bring about change,î Mr Feneley says of his appointment in July 2012 as the first NSW Mental Health Commissioner, charged with reviewing and improving the stateís response to mental illness.
Mr Feneley credits the mental health consumer movement, and its insistence on recovery, choice and autonomy, with setting the scene for system reforms - focused on better support in the community ñ that have stalled in the past.

Interests: Recovery, mental health reform, human rights

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Margaret Fleming

Country: Ireland

Background: Margaret Fleming RPN, FFNRCSI, MSc has worked in mental health services in Ireland for the past 31 years. She is a Fellow of the Faculty of Nursing, Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland and holds an MSc in Health and Social Services Management from the University of Ulster, Northern Ireland. At present she is working as Clinical Co-ordinator with Monaghan Community Mental Health Team, which is a multidisciplinary team providing mental health services to a rural population in County Monaghan. Margaret and her team work in close collaboration with Primary Care Services and voluntary and statutory agencies. She has been at the forefront of designing, planning and restructuring this new service model now known both nationally and internationally as The Monaghan Model. She has been actively involved in establishing a resource centre, which is service user driven and also in the development of a mental health promotion programme for young adults. This programme has been accredited by Mental Health Europe as best practice in mental health promotion for young adults. Margaret is the Irish project leader with the "Whole Life Project" which is a joint project between the National Institute for Mental Health in England (NIMHE) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) Collaborating Network. She is also currently working as a consultant with the World Health Organisation involved in the restructuring of mental health services in Albania.

Interests: Whole-life recovery

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Tony Gardner

Country: UK

Background: Retired Chief Executive, Cornwall Partnership Trust

Interests: Whole life recovery service development

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Robert Goodwin

Country: Wales

Background: Robert is the Directorate General Manager, Mental Health Directorate for Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board. Robert is an experienced General Manager having been appointed to the Directorate Management Team in 1990, responsible for developing the South Wales Forensic Mental Health Service based at Glanrhyd Hospital.
In 2005, following an internal reorganisation of services within the former Bro Morgannwg NHS Trust, he was appointed as the General Manager for an integrated Mental Health Directorate, including Adult, Older Peopleís, Forensic and Substance Misuse Services, covering the Bridgend, Neath Port Talbot and Western Vale of Glamorgan area. Following the establishment of the ABMU Health Board, Robert was appointed to the position of General Manager for the Mental Health Directorate serving the enlarged community, including Swansea.
Robert works closely with the Royal College of Psychiatry Quality Network and is a lead reviewer for Mental Health Services across the UK.

Interests:

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Amanda Hall

Country: Wales

Background: Amanda is a HCPC Registered and BPS Chartered Counselling Psychologist and an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society (BPS).
She has worked in the NHS for the past 20 years as an applied psychologist and is employed as a Consultant Psychologist and Clinical Lead for Psychological Therapies and Eating Disorders in Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University NHS Health Board. She is currently developing Tier 0 Mental Health psychological services in ABMU in partnership with local authority colleagues, the third sector and non-statutory agencies.
Amanda has worked at a national Wales level for the past 10 years participating in the development of the Policy Implementation Guide for Psychological Therapies and the implementation of the National Framework for Eating Disorders.In addition she is the South Wales lead for the Royal College of Psychiatryís National Audit for Psychological Therapies (NAPT) and the British Psychological Societyís representative on the New Savoy Partnership (a national multi-organisational partnership concerned with Increasing Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) developments in England). She operates at British Psychological Society level as a national assessor and examiner and the lead training coordinator for the Qualification in Counselling Psychology.
In addition Amanda is a part-time Lecturer on the MSc in Clinical and Abnormal Psychology and Psychology Lead for the Graduate Entry to Medicine programme at Swansea University. She has recently completed a chapter on Eating Disorders for a book on Common Presenting Problems in Psychotherapy due to be published by Sage in December 2013.
Shifting away from an emphasis on medicalising and pathologising lower level mental distress, Amanda is interested in resilience building at community level - where the notion of recovery is central to the ideological position of community wellbeing. She has a commitment to develop sustainable, well organised and evidence-based services on an early intervention basis across the ABMU footprint.

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Siti Hazrah

Country: Malaysia

Background: Siti is a psychiatrist working in community and rehabilitation at Johor Bahru Mental Health Service, Malaysia.

Interests: Restraint policies and practice.

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John Jenkins

Country: UK

He has worked in community mental health development for 50 years as a clinician,manager,policy maker, educator and consultant.
He qualified in South Wales in the 1960ís and 1970ës as an RMN, SRN, Diploma in Health Studies,MBA and worked at the Cassel Hospital, London gaining a Diploma in Psychotherapy.
In 1976-1989 he was the General Manager of Devon Health Authority, developing the first comprehensive mental health service in the UK resulting in the closure of 3 psychiatric institutions.
He then became a senior policy adviser in the Department of Health reviewing previous mental health policies and formulating new policies, strategies and initiatives.
In 1992 he established and directed the Center for Mental Health Services Development at Kings College, London.This was established by the DoH to assist in the implementation of national mental health policy across England.
He was the Director of Operations and Service Development at North Birmingham Mental Health Trust that pioneered the mental health community functional teams that later became national policy and implemented throughout England.
Together with colleagues across the world he established the International Mental Health Collaborating Network(IMHCN) in 1993, an International NGO and is the current Chief Executive.
He has been a mental health adviser to Ministries of Health and Health Authorities in: Australia,New Zealand,India,Malaysia,Serbia,Romania,France,Italy,Ireland, Argentina.
He has been a senior consultant for WHO in Kosova,Albania and Macedonia and for 6 years was the Mental Health Program Manager for WHO in Palestine.
He has been a Senior Lecturer on Mental Health policy and reform at Brunel University and Kings College in London and in others around the world over the last 30 years.
He provides consultancy and training on Whole Person, Whole Life-Whole Systems Community Development in the UK and other countries.

Interests: Introducing and cementing Whole Life Recovery practice within services, practice and policy.

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Vladimir Jovic

Country: Serbia

Background: Vladimir Jovi?, is a psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, human rights activist and researcher working in Belgrade,Serbia.
Since 1993 Vladimir has worked on projects related to psychosocial assistance to refugees in the Soros Foundation, the Stress Clinic, Institute of Mental Health in Belgrade (in collaboration with UNHCR) and the International Aid Network in cooperation with Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD) and Cordaid. In 1997 he was one of the founders of the International Aid Network (IAN; www.ian.org.rs ), a local non-governmental and non-profit organization that is specialised in providing psychosocial help to vulnerable groups (such as refugees, torture victims, people living with HIV / AIDS, mentally ill, people with developmental problems), and since then in the IAN he worked on several programs as a psychiatrist, coordinator or project manager, and from 2006 until 2010 he was the Executive Director of the IAN.
Since 2003 until 2008 Dr Jovi? was the Project Country Manager for Serbia in Mental health projects of Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe: "Enhancing social cohesion through strengthening of mental health in South-Eastern Europe" (2003-2008),and "Establishment of regional networks and systems for collecting and exchange of information on health and social care "(2005-2006), which were aimed at transformation of old psychiatric institutions into community mental health care. From 2008 he worked as a consultant on the program "Development of integrated mental health and social services for the model region" which is being implemented in collaboration with Global Initiative in Psychiatry (GIP), IAN, Special Psychiatric Hospital ìGornja Toponicaî, Nis, Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the Republic of Serbia. From 2010 he is the members of the Board of the International Mental Health Collaboration Network (IMHCN).
Since 2001 Dr. Jovi? was working as the Medical Director at the Centre for Rehabilitation of Torture Victims (CRTV) in IAN, financed by the European Commission. CRTV is today continuously financed by the European Commission, the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture(UNVFVT), and cooperates with the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT) in Copenhagen and a network of Centres for Prevention and Rehabilitation of Torture Victims. CRTV provides comprehensive rehabilitation of torture victims (victims of war-related torture and victims of police or institutional torture).
Since 2004 until 2006 he worked as the Director of the "Redress in Action" programme, aimed at providing medical, psychiatric / psychological and legal assistance to refugees who were forcibly mobilised, as well as coordinating advocacy activities. Since 2006 until 2008 he was the coordinator of the project "Prevention through Documentation" (IPIP2) to implement the Istanbul Protocol for the Prevention of Torture, in collaboration with the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT).
From June 2009 he is a member of the Expert Council for the protection of persons deprived of their liberty of the Protector of rights of citizens of Republic of Serbia (Ombudsman), where he is working to establish a system for monitoring of prisons, social and psychiatric institutions. Since 2011 he works as an expert for the National Preventive Mechanism which is operative within the Office of Protector of Citizens of Republic of Serbia.
As a consultant he worked for the Helsinki Committee in Serbia (the monitoring of social services), office of the OSCE Mission to Serbia (Capacity Development Office of the Protector of citizens' rights), Belgrade Centre for Human Rights (mental health care in prisons), Latvian Centre for HumanRights (Monitoring Places of Detention in Montenegro), Council of Europe (health care system in prisons in the Russian Federation).

Interests:

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Linda Keelan

Country: Wales

Background:

Interests:

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Devora Kestel

Country: USA

Background: DÈvora is a senior mental health policy specialist at PAHO/WHO with more than twenty five years of international experience in Europe, the Caribbean and Latin America, implementing and advising governments on national policies related to mental health systems. She is a strong advocate for the rights of people with mental health issues. Ms. Kestel obtained her MSc in Psychology from the Universidad Nacional de La Plata, in Argentina and her MSc in Public Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK. After completing her university studies in Argentina she worked for 10 years in the development and supervision of community-based mental health services in Trieste, Italy. In 2000 she joined WHO in Kosovo, as a mental health officer; then joined WHO Albania as mental health officer, and later as the WHO Representative to Albania. In both countries, she worked closely with the Ministries of Health to help establish comprehensive community-based mental health systems. In 2007 Mrs Kestel joined PAHO as a Sub-regional Mental Health Advisor for the English Speaking Caribbean Countries, based in Barbados. In 2011 Mrs. Kestel was appointed to the position of the Regional Mental Health Advisor, based in Washington DC, providing technical cooperation in the mental health field to the entire region, with special attention to the Caribbean. In 2015 she was appointed to the position of Unit Chief for Mental Health and Substance Use at the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization.

Interests: Community based services

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Philip Kloer

Country: Wales

Background: Philip is Executive Director for Primary Care, Community, Mental Health Services & Clinical Strategy (Interim) He is a Consultant Respiratory Physician and has trained in Wales, Southampton and New Zealand. He was previously Director of Clinical Strategy at Hywel Dda University Health Board before taking on his current role as Interim Executive Director of Primary Care, Community, Mental Health Services and Clinical Strategy. He previously chaired the National Rapid Response to Acute Illness (RRAILS) Steering Group, which was responsible for driving the implementations of NEWS into every acute hospital in Wales. He also chairs the Measurement and Information work stream of the National Unscheduled Care Board. He has a particular interest in quality improvement in healthcare services and is a member of the National 1000 Lives Plus Faculty Board.

Interests:

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Samantha Korak

Country: Wales

Background: Samantha Korak is a student of Swansea University, Wales. She graduated in 2013 attaining a BSc Medical Sciences and Humanities degree. Currently Samantha is on the MSc Social Work programme where she has gained experience of working in an Older Persons Community Mental Health Team (CMHT), an Adult Services CMHT and a Frontline Child Protection Team. She has a keen interest in cultural influences where her dissertation is titled, ìCultural Competence in Child Protection Social Work: A Partnership or Conflictî. Samantha has had the opportunity of volunteering internationally in Ho, Ghana where she was involved in various projects such as the School Outreach Project, the Community Outreach Project and the ëCured Lepers Villageí project. She has also worked with the universityís International Studentís Advisory Service (ISAS) supporting students from overseas to settle into the university and surroundings.
Samanthaís passion is meeting & engaging with people to hear their stories and build positive relationships. Samanthaís working background ranges from working in retail to working with a number of voluntary agencies to include Tenovus, RNIB and ACE Cardiff. She was also involved in the launch of the Anuerin Bevan Health Board Befriending Scheme in Cardiff.

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Mia Kurtti

Country: Finland

Background: Mia is a Family Therapist based in Western Lapland, Finland. Mia has been working in Western Lapland district since 2003, and has 11 years of clinical experience as a nurse in psychiatric care. Today, she is assistant head nurse in Keropudas Hospitalís polyclinic. Mia is skilled in family therapy and also in Open Care.
In 2002, Mia co-presented on An Extended introduction to Open Dialogue with Birgitta in Bantry, West Cork Mental Health Services, Ireland. In 2014 she co-facilitated a series of four weekend training sessions in London with Open Dialogue UK. She also helps organise international visits to Western Lapland psychiatric district to learn more about the Open Dialogue Approach.

Interests: Open Dialogue

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Patrick le Cardinal

Country: France

Background:

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Marcelino Lopez

Country: Spain

Background:
Marcelino is a psychiatrist and sociologist, after practicing clinical psychiatry, he worked from 1984 in building a public community mental health service in Andalucia. This region is in the south of Spain, with 8.400.000 inhabitants. As Director of the Planning Office of the Reform he participated in the deinstitutionalization and closure of 8 public psychiatric hospitals and the design of the alternative system and the organization of specialized mental health care in the Andalousian General Health Service. He is the Director of programs, evaluation and research in the public Foundation, FAISEM that develops social support programs for people with severe mental disorders (housing, employment, occupation, support to the family and service users associations).

Interests: He is interested in community mental health systems, social and work inclusion of people with severe mental illness and mental health sociology and epidemiology

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Eleanor Longden

Eleanor LongdenCountry: England, UK


Background: Psychologist, expert by experience. Eleanor Longden is a psychologist, she works with the Bradford Early Intervention in Psychosis Team. As a voice hearer and past user of psychiatric services, she has a strong interest in promoting tolerance, awareness and positive explanations for mental health issues, and for the last four years has worked in both a clinical and academic capacity to endorse creative, enabling approaches to experiences such as voice-hearing, unusual beliefs and self-injury.

Interests: Voices, Self Injury, Voice Dialogue

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Marcello Macario

Country: Italy

Background: Marcello is a psychiatrist, he works at the Community Mental Health Centre, Carcare, Savona. Marcello is the chair of the Italian Hearing Voices Network and coordinator of the ìSheltered Apartmentsî (10 patients) of Carcare and Cengio (Sv).
Marcello worked for the Italian National Research Council (2007) to coordinate the writing of a research project on ìRecoveryî which involved the ìMario Negriî Institute of Milan, Dundee University, Stockholm University and the International Collaborating Network on Mental Health.
He was actively involved with leading roles in the regional social cooperative network (1980-2009): from 1980 to 1983 he was the president of the social cooperative ìIl Faggioî which was working with mentally handicapped people in the community; from 2004 to 2009 I was the president of the social cooperative ìIl Caselloî in which 1/3 of workers are people with mental health problems.
Since 2004 he has been involved in the establishment of the Italian Hearing Voices Network.

Interests: Supported housing, recovery, hearing Voices

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Salifu Manneh

Country: England/Gambia

Background: Salifu was born and brought up in the Gambia. He studied and received his university education in the UK. Salifu is a registered mental health nurse and holds a diploma in nursing, Bsc Nursing and Msc Health Sciences. He is registered with Manchester Metropilitan University initially for a Master of Philopsophy with a view to work towards a Phd in health and social care. Salifu is the clinical audit/clinical effectiveness lead for the Alternative Futures Group (AFG). He is a board member of the IMHCN.
Salifu is also the Director of Mobee a mental health NGO based in Gambia. In association with the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare Mobee support workers are now working alongside ministry of health staff to support both inpatient and community mental health services in the West Coast Region. The national country mental health coordinator and his directorate are supportive of Mobee work. Mobee also works in partnership with UK charities to fund study tours. Mobee and AFG have worked in partnership to successfully deliver 3 study tours to the Gambia to enhance staff skills and knowledge in self- leadership and personal development.
He is interested in football and supports Manchester United, an active member of the Gambia social welfare organisation in Leeds and the Sukuta welfare society. Both organisations promote integration in the United Kingdom and good local community cohesion.

Interests: International partnerships, community mental health, personal development.

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Marsili Massimo

Country: France

Background:

Interests:

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Anne Markwick

Country: England

Background: Director of Recovery, mental health manager

Interests: Whole life recovery

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Dave McAuley

Country: England

Background:David McAuley is a senior manager and strategic Mental Health lead for Plymouth Community Healthcare.
He has extensive knowledge and experience (23 years) of working within Mental Health and Learning Disability services and has worked for services within Plymouth for approximately 7 years in both senior professional and operational management roles. He has also worked extensively in Cornwall in both a clinical and managerial capacity, as well as embarking upon occasional consultancy work for the World Health Organisation in both Albania and the Palestinian Territories.
David has a special interest in the development of Payment by Results (PbR) in Mental Health and is a member of the Department of Health Mental Health Payments by Result Product Review Group. He has a track record of service development and re-design and leading this based upon the principles of recovery. He is passionate about whole life, whole systems working and is currently developing strategies to embed this ethos within the services he works within.

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Peter McGeorge

Country: Australia

Background:Dr Peter McGeorge QSO, MB ChB, FRANZCP is the Director of the Inner City Health Service at St Vincentís Hospital, Sydney. He is a child, adolescent and general psychiatrist and has extensive experience in the development and delivery of mental health services in New Zealand, Australia and internationally.
During the past 20 years he has been involved in the development and clinical management of integrated systems of community and hospital-based mental health care, national policy development, quality improvement and reviews of mental health services.
He has held positions as Director of Mental Health Services in Auckland and Wellington NZ and has been involved in the governance of several NGOs. He been chair of the NZ Mental Health Foundation and is now the Patron of this organisation. Together with a group of prominent psychiatrists and psychologists he led the development of the Youth Horizons Trust in NZ an NGO established to address the needs of young people with Conduct Disorders. More recently he chaired the Steering Group reviewing the Australian National Mental Health Standard and on leave from his role at St Vincentís Hospital spent a term as Chair of the NZ Mental Health Commission.
His research interests encompass international mental health policy, the development of systems of integrated health and social care for vulnerable people living in urban environments, emergency psychiatry and the mental health of young people and their families.

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Theodoros Megaloecononomou

Country: Greece

Background:

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Margaret Meleady

Country: Wales

Background: Margaret is the Manager of Hywel Dda University Health Board. Margaret is a Senior Practitioner, Carmarthenshire Secondary Mental Health Services. Qualified as a registered mental health nurse in 1990 and spent most of career working within Acute psychiatry and Psychiatric Intensive care units.
She moved to Wales in 2002 and had an active role in the modernisation agenda, relocating services from institutional care to a community setting, taking an active and supportive role in Crisis Resolution Home Treatment developments, and more recently the project management and clinical development of Therapeutic day services, initially in Carmarthen and now across the Three Counties.
She Completed a BSc (Hons) in Forensic care studies in 2008 and also successfully completed Postgraduate a Diploma in Advanced Clinical Practice in in the same year. She qualified as a Dialectical Behavioural Therapy practitioner and has been awarded the Postgraduate Certificate in DBT in 2012.
Margaret is currently practicing, under supervision, as a Schema Therapy practitioner with a view to obtaining the Advanced Schema Therapist accreditation later this year. She is a core member of the Personality Disorder Consultation Service in the Psychotherapy department in West Wales General Hospital.

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Roberto Mezzina

Country: Italy

Background: Roberto is the Director of Mental Health, Trieste psychiatrist, contributed for the last 30 years to the experience begun by Franco Basaglia in Trieste (who inspired the Italian Mental Health Reform Law in 1978), with the de-institutionalization of the local psychiatric hospital and the subsequent development of alternative Community Services.
For over 20 years he has headed a comprehensive, 24-hour Community Mental Health Centre. From 2009 he has been the Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Research and Training, Department of Mental Health, Trieste, which aims to support deinstitutionalisation and development of community based services world wide and to support government reform policies (in the last twelve months this has included work in Denmark, Czech Republic, Australia, New Zealand among others). He supports the International Mental Health Collaborating Network (he is currently Vice-President).
His professional experience and scientific production includes de-institutionalization, organization of community services, crisis intervention, integrated approach to the therapy of psychosis, community care, rehabilitation, user involvement, research and epidemiology, epistemology, quality assurance and critical forensic psychiatry. He has been invited as teacher, keynote speaker and expert in hundreds of Scientific Institutes, Universities, Mental Health Services in Italy, Europe (Belgium, Spain, Great Britain, Ireland, France, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Slovakia, Serbia, Greece, Finland, Romania, Albania) and overseas (USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, Sri Lanka, Palestine, Iran).

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John Murphy

John is Chairperson of the Solas Drop In Centre in Monaghan, Ireland. He has spent time in the past in acute units both as a student nurse and as a ëpatientí. Though not at the same time, he would
stress!

He lives in Monaghan with his dog Marley and in 2012 was nominated for a Community Achievement Award for long term service to Solas.

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Robin Murray

Country: England

Background: Has most recently been working in a lead role on direct payments for the National Social Inclusion Programme and the CSIP/DH ìIncreasing the Uptake of Direct Paymentsî programme.
Robin previously worked in a variety of roles for MACA/Together; these included the co-ordinator to the MACASURE user-controlled research project and line manager for work/employment, residential, community support and personal development services.
Way back in the mists of time Robin worked in a local authority ìrehabilitation hostelî and prior to that worked in a large ìpsychiatric hospitalî.
Robin is particularly interested in the values that lie behind the implementation of direct payments and the developing work around Individual Budgets (the promotion of equality and independent living for all people) and their relevance to Recovery as defined by people with mental health problems.

Interests: Recovery implementation and policy issues

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Maggie Nichols

Country: Wales

Background: Maggie is a musician and creative artist, she uses these skills and experience in her work with people with mental health issues. She was one of the founders of The Gathering established in 1989. It is a space, place and time where people can build up confidence in their creativity. She is a family member. She is passionate in her belief of the importance of whole life recovery for people in extreme states. She is an active member of West Wales Action for Mental Health, the local Partnership Board. She assisted in the establishment of the peer support group at the ìGet Stuffed Cafeî.

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Mary Oí Hagan

Country: New Zealand

Background: Mary OíHagan is a well known innovator, thinker and writer. Mary used mental health services in New Zealand for eight years as a young woman. Ever since, she has worked to make a difference to the way society and services respond to people with major mental distress.
Mary was an initiator of the user/survivor movement in New Zealand; the first chair of the World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry; an advisor to the United Nations and World Health Organisation; a Mental Health Commissioner for New Zealand; an international speaker, consultant and writer; an international thought leader on service user perspectives; used for her unique expertise in recovery, wellbeing and discrimination and peer support; developing a major new peer-led project called PeerZone: shared learning for wellbeing; working in the Netherlands, Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.Mary's major work these days is helping providers develop peer support services and PeerZone see www.wellbeingrecovery.com.

Interests: peer support development, recovery based systems, wellbeing, and discrimination.

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Bodil ÿster

Country: Denmark

Background:

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Alexandru Paziuc

Country: Romania

Background: Dr. Alexandru is a psychiatrist and is the President of the Romanian Associatiaon of Social Psychiatry.He praactices in Suceava County in North-Eastern Romania. In 1984, he graduated at the Institute of Medicine and Pharmaceutics of Ia?i University (Romania). He was International Fellow of the Eastern and Central European Scholarship Program at the Georgetown University and Visiting Scholar at the George Washington University, School of Public Health and Health Services in 2003-2004, and he achieved a Certificate in International Health Policy, Health Systems and Health Care Management. Starting in the 1990s, by introducing state-of-the-art treatment ingredients such as outreach, community care and multiprofessional teams, he thoroughly modernized mental health care in C‚mpulung Moldovenesc, a town in the Romanian Bucovina region. Today, the cityís Mental Health Center is considered one of the centers preoccupied in mental health reform in Romania. In 2005, he founded and is still the chairman of the Romanian Association of Social Psychiatry. Furthermore, he is member of the Geneva Initiative on Psychiatry, of the ÑOrizonturiî (Horizons) Foundation which fights stigma and discrimination against people with mental health problems, and promoter of the program ìSteps towards Politicsî in partnership with Hamlet Trust and Interaction UK. He was part of the European network for promoting the physical health of residents in psychiatric and social care facilities (HELPS). He coordinated in 2009 a EU Phare Project Community alternatives of psychiatric care ñ the mobile team.

Interests: He has given lectures at a number of national and international scientific meetings on mental health care and service user involvement. For many years he has been preoccupied in community psychiatry and his work was dedicated to the reform of mental health services, in the rehabilitation and the reintegration of people with mental health disabilities in society.

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Nick Pennell

Country: England

Background: Nick Pennell was Chief Executive Officer for Plymouth and District Mind until 2013. Nick spent thirty years in the N.H.S. as a career manager with this
time being spent mostly, and by choice, within mental health services. Nick has considerable experience of developing and managing mental health services having started his career in Peterborough and worked in a number of locations including Cambridge, Lincoln, Bournemouth and most recently Plymouth. Nick is committed to ensuring the development of improved mental health services, to involving service users and stakeholders and to the use of whole system approaches in the development and functioning of services.
Nick is a founder member, and a strong advocate, of the Plymouth Mental Health Network and was the Vice Chairman.
Nick is married with two children and in his spare time enjoys D.I.Y, following football and, living on the edge of Dartmoor the occasional walk that is carefully planned to finish at a local pub.

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Jan Pfeiffer

Country: Czech Republic

Background: Jan Pfieffer works for the European Commission. He is a psychiatrist and a leading advocate of reform for mental health care as well of deinstitutionalization of the services for other disability groups. Active in the Czech Republic as well Europe-wide, he chairs European Expert Group on Transition of institutional to community-based care. He is also a member of the CPT committee as well as the Committee against torture and ill-treatment of the Council in Europe.

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Pino Pini

Country: Italy

Background: Consultant psychiatrist

Pino was trained in psychotherapy (Jungian analysis and systemic psychotherapy); He has been interested to the holistic approach to the patients balancing medical and psychological knowledge. In the decade between the 80s and the 90s he decided to make a political experience as counsellor in a city borough of Florence. This gave him the possibility to better know the social side of mental health and the general needs of people in the local community. In 1982 he spent 2 months in the USA to train in family therapy, in 1983 he spent one month in France to study the French MH services. In 1984 he began to establish relationships with mental health associations and mental health services in the UK.
He became a member of the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) in 1989 and was the founder and the first president of the Italian National Mental Health Association AISMe from 1993. He also served as a Board Member of ERC (European Regional Council) ñWFMH from 1993 and Executive Member of ERC-WFMH (now Mental Heath Europe) since 1995.
He has organised many conferences and seminars on self-help in mental health and has published extensively on this topic as well as producing two books.
He has been co-ordinator of the European Project ìmental health services evaluation in partnership with usersî (Helios 2) and he has been partner of other European projects (DGV) on Advocacy and on Equal Opportunities. Since 2002 he has led an international group named Local Mental Health Systems with the aim to improve new mental health practices in the community based on approaches alternative to the therapeutic models. He has a close collaboration since the early 1980s with the Psychology Department of the Florence University.

Interests: Peer Support & Self help groups, community based approach, hearing voices

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Fabio Pittuco (sent)

Country: Sweden

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Pina Ridente

Country: Italy

Background: Pina is a psychiatrist and has worked for the Trieste Mental Health Department since 1981, and since 2001 has been the Director of the Rehabilitation and Residences Operating Unit, working especially on continuous qualifying of community based residential facilities; promotion of work skills and employment programs for people in contact with mental health centres; active support to social cooperatives to improve employment opportunity. She has collaborated since 1987 in the research and training activities of the Regional Mental Health Research and Studies Centre, with a particular attention to the issue of gender and mental health. She was a trainer and director for the mandatory reskilling Courses for social-health care personnel. She was an expert collaborator in the Saloniko Psychiatric Hospital in the context of the programme by the European Commission, and in the San Domingo Psychiatric Hospital, in the Dominican Republic, in the context of a PanAmerican Health and WHO programme. Since 1990, she was an instructor in the Psychiatric Specialisation Course of the Trieste Professional Nursing School.

Since 2005 she has started up the ìindividual health budgetî ñ an experimental individual budgeting methodology, producing a specific individual care plan schedule; this methodology has expanded and strengthened the partnership with social private organization. As an expert in this field, she was invited in several italian regions (Sicilia, Lombardia, Sardegna, Emilia) to start innovative projects and to gave communication in several conferences.
From 2007 she collaborated with the Trieste Centre at the European Research DEMOBinC, officially financed by EU Public Health fund, attending meeting in London (2007), Trieste, Wroclaw and Prague(2008), Athens (2009).
She is the co-coordinator of the research financed by Italian Minister of Health on Job Placement in the Mental Health Departments (PILDSM 2009).
As a WHO expert consultant she has cooperated with the Bethlehem Psychiatric Hospital in Palestine within the frame of support that the WHO was providing to the Palestinian Government
As a WHO expert consultant she is cooperating with the Bolu Psychiatric Hospital (one of the WHO Mental Health and Disability Project pilot sites in Turkey), within the frame of support that the WHO Country Office in Turkey is providing to the Turkish Government about ëPromoting Services for People with Disabilitiesí.

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Paul Roberts

Country: England

Background: Paul Roberts joined the NHS, after graduating from Oxford University in 1987, as a national management trainee based at Torbay Hospital. He undertook clinical management posts in surgical services and children's services at Torbay Hospital and the Leicester Royal Infirmary before moving to Grantham Hospital in 1993, where he was appointed as Chief Executive in 1994.
He moved to Plymouth in February 1997 as Chief Executive of Plymouth Community Services NHS Trust and as Chief Executive of Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust in 2000. In 2011 he was appointed as Chief Executive of Abertawe Bro Morgannwg University Health Board.

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Jean-Luc Roelandt

Country: France

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Marius Romme (sent)

Country: Netherlands

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Alan Rosen

Screen Shot 2015-01-15 at 12.59.20Country: Australia

Background: Alan is a Deputy Commissioner with the New South Wales Mental Health Commission in Australia.
In his nearly 30 years as consultant psychiatrist, director and clinical director of the Royal North Shore Hospital and Community Mental Health Services, Professor Alan Rosen has focused on the shift of the centre of gravity of mental health services from hospital to community-centered, integrating community and hospital services, while involving consumers and families directly in their management.
Professor Rosenís strong partnerships with other clinical disciplines and community agencies, as well as his involvement in research, has helped shift the thinking towards a model based on peopleís home and community, supported by effective 24-hour service, with hospital care only when really necessary.
He was also involved in research into early intervention in psychosis which contributed to reforms in NSW and the National Mental Health Strategy, leading to the replacement of institutions with community mental health teams, community-based respite residential alternatives to local inpatient facilities, supported by local general health facilities. Professor. He believes the key to achieving reform is valuing real, detailed and continuing consultation with all parties, especially the consumer and family movements. Professor Rosen encourages greater reliance on research evidence to guide how individuals are treated and how mental health services can work in more effective, less alienating ways that are oriented towards recovery and full citizenship in the community.

Interests: Services, research and policy development concerning remote and community controlled Aboriginal mental health services, the involvement of peer workers in mental health care, stigma, and the measurement of outcomes including of recovery

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Lear Rothwell (sent)

Country: England

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Franco Rotelli

Country: Italy

Background: Dr Franco is a Regional Health Commissioner for Friuli Venezia Giulia Region,Trieste, Italy. Franco is the elected Regional Health Commissioner for the constituency of Udine. He is a physician and psychiatrist and worked from 1971 to 1979 with Mark Levy MD. He was part of the management that planned and successfully closed the psychiatric hospital in Trieste, Italy. This was the example that formed the basis of Law 180 (1978) that established the closure of psychiatric hospitals across Italy. In 1980 he succeeded Franco Basaglia as the director the psychiatric services of Trieste, a post he held for fifteen years. From 1998 to 2001 he was Director General of the Health in Trieste. He held the same post in Caserta then from 2001 to 2004. Returning to Trieste from 2004 to 2010.

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Dr. Susan Ruggeri

Country: England, UK

Background: Chartered Counselling Psychologist. Dr Susan Ruggeri is a Chartered Counselling Psychologist who is currently working for MHC in two Recovery focused hospitals in North Wales. Plas Coch Independent Hospital is a specialised dedicated female only service, registered to admit female patients, aged 19-60 years, with a primary diagnosis of enduring mental health problems such as borderline personality disorder and treatment-resistive mental illness. New Hall Independent Hospital is a 25 bed all male service that provides a rehabilitation and recovery model of care and treatment for 25 male patients, aged 18-65 years, who have functional mental health disorders and mild learning disabilities.
Dr Ruggeri worked in education for 25 years teaching a variety of subjects to students aged 11-18years providing academic and pastoral support. Through this she developed an interest in working with individuals to explore the constraints of the systems they are immersed in. She went on to train as a couples counsellor before undertaking research into working with people with a diagnosis of Aspergers syndrome. She co-facilitated an Aspergerís support group and wrote a thesis on Aspergerís syndrome and humour which has been submitted for publication.

Interests: Dr Ruggeriís current interests lie in working with voices. She currently facilitates voices groups in both hospitals as well as providing individual one to one sessions. She has also presented workshops on working with voices at number of external MHC events.

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Alison Ryan

Country: England

Background:Alison is the Director of Recovery, Hertfordshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. Alison trained as a Clinical Psychologist, working initially in Australia, before moving to England 10 years ago. She has worked in a wide range of settings in England and Australia. She has gathered her experience along the way, working in AMH community and inpatient services, as well as services for older people, services for children, families and adults, and also services for people with brain injury.
For the last 4 and a half years she has worked within Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust originally as the Lead for Psychological Services. More recently has taken on the Recovery Lead role within the Trust. She is a member of the RAISE steering group ñ working to develop an international online MsC for Recovery. She is involved with IMROC (Implementing Recovery through Organisational Change) and also with the International Mental Health Collaborating Network. She has been leading on a number of CQUIN targets linked to Recovery, and most recently has been involved in developing and launching the Trustís self management tool - Health and Wellbeing Plans.

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Libby Ryan Davies

Country: England

Background:Libby is the Interim Director Mental Health & Learning Disabilities. Libby trained as an Occupational Therapist and worked across health and social care, specialising in Mental Health. She has worked in a number of senior practitioner and service manager roles prior to taking on the Interim Director role in September 2013.
Her core role is in directing transformational change across the Mental Health and Learning Disability Directorate, including adult, older adult, S-CAMHS, Learning Disabilities, Substance and Commissioning. Libby led an extensive repatriation programme for patients to local services via the commissioning of core Psychiatric Intensive Care and Low Secure provision. The development of evidence based innovative service models for Mental Health an Learning Disability via service redesign is her passion.

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Rossana Maria Seabra Sade

Country: Brazil

Background: Rossana is currently Assistant Professor at the Universidade Estadual Paulista J˙lio de Mesquita Filho. She is a board member of the International Mental Health Collaborating Network (IMHCN) and member of Editorial Board of the International Association of Applied Psychology. Rossana has refereed several scientific publications and authored several articles on mental health and good practices. In 2014, she published the book Doors Open: from the asylum to the territory. the book includes interviews with key people from Trieste including the National Coordinator of the International school Franca and Franco Basaglia.

Interests: Mental Health of Children and Adolescents, life experience of mental health issues, institutionalisation processes.

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Alberto Salmoiraghi

Country: Wales

Background: Alberto qualified in medicine and surgery at the University of Milan. There he had the opportunity to write a thesis in experimental research in psychiatry. He moved to England where he started his training in psychiatry obtaining the MRC Psych. He also has obtained a qualification in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Medical Leadership. He is involved actively in research and obtained the title of Honorary Senior Lecturer at the University of Liverpool. He joined Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board in 2007 as a Consultant Psychiatrist of the Home Treatment Team and Community Mental Health Team. He is currently involved in the development of services in North Wales. bHe is currently the Divisional Clinical Director for North Wales.

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Ana Esther Sanchez

Country: Spain

Background Ana is a Medical Doctor and Psychiatrist. She is head of service of Mental Health Services in Mieres, Asturias Spain since 1986. Ana is also manager of Mieresís Mental Health Network. She was a Mental Health Consultant for WHO in Albania 2002 and 2003. Mental Health Consultant for WHO in Kosovo 2003 and Mental Health Project Manager in the WHO - Albania Country office 2005-2006.

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Mark Sampson

Country: England

Background:Mark is the Lead Clinician at the 5 Boroughs Partnership NHS Trust, Warrington. For the past 10 years Mark has specialized in working with people who have problems that would lead them to meet the diagnosis of a personality disorder. He has also been involved in local and national policy development for personality disorder e.g. he worked for NICE as a guideline development group member on the borderline personality disorder guideline. Mark has also co-edited ëPersonality Disorder and Community Mental Health Teamsí (2006). Mark is currently a member of the Clinical Reference Group for Tier 4 personality disorder ñ representing Cheshire and Merseyside. Mark has works with Anthony Bateman in developing a training package for structured clinical management (SCM). He has delivered SCM across the country and the lead clinician in implementing this new approach to the care and treatment of personality disorder to his Trust.

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Dyaa Saymad

Country: Palestine

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Donna Sharp

Country: Wales

Background: Donna is the Community Mental Integrated Health Team Manager at Neath Port Talbot. Donna qualified as a nurse in 2008. Employed as a community psychiatric nurse in Bridgend North Community Mental Health Team for 4 years working as a care co-ordinator for adults between the ages of 18-65 with complex, sever and enduring mental health issues. Became a integrated team manager for the Neath Port Talbot South Community Mental Health Team in 2012 managing a team of 26 staff members to provide care for clients in the community.

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David Shiers

Country: England

Background: David is a retired GP from North Staffordshire. After complaining about his daughterís care for schizophrenia in the mid 90s, David became joint lead of the National Early Intervention in Psychosis Programme (2004-10). Retiring in 2010, David continues to engage with the Royal Colleges of Psychiatry and General Practice to promote the importance of tackling the early physical determinants which set young people with psychosis on a pathway to poor health and premature death. Most recently David has worked with the late Professor Helen Lester (UK), Jackie Curtis and colleagues from Sydney NSW to develop Healthy Active Lives (HeAL), an international consensus statement on the importance of an early intervention approach to preventing future poor physical health.

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Mike Smith

Country: England

Background: Mike is the Deputy Chairman of IMHCN. He is the Clinical Director of the Alternative Futures Group, Liverpool. Mike was a former Director of Nursing for the NHS and consultant for the World Health Organisation (WHO). He has developed and implemented mental health services in over 30 countries, including Asia, Africa and North America. He also gained the prestigious title of ëUK Nurse of the Yearí.

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Sarah Stanyon

Country: Wales

Background:Sarah is from Swansea, Wales. She is mental health service user and has had many diagnoses over the last eleven years. She shares her lived and direct experience of services to help improve the understanding of practitioners and services of service user needs and perspectives. She advises various health and social care committees.

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Rajiah Abu Sway

Country: Palestine

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ThaÌs Thome Seni S. E. Olivera

Country: Brazil

Background: ThaÌs is a researcher - psychologist. Her career includes work as a psychotherapist, professor, supervisor and psychologist in both social and clinical work. She is specialist in groups, using this tool for clinical, social and scientific purposes.

Most recently she has been conducting a post doctoral research in a partnership between the University of S„o Paulo and the University of Trieste.

Her curriculum link in Brazil can be found here.

Interests: Mental health team work, development of strategies for team improvement, community based mental health care, group process, amplified clinic.

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Alain Topor

Country: Sweden

Background: Researcher ñ psychologist. Alain Topor is a psychologist and assistant professor at the Department of Social Work, Stockholm University. He also works as head of the Department of Research and Development at Psychiatry South, Stockholm. His career has included work as a family therapist, supervisor and psychologist in both social work and psychiatry, as well as experience working as a journalist.
He was involved in the closure of Stockholmís two mental hospitals and also contributed to the development of social alternatives to these institutions.
Most recently he has been conducting research into the recovery process of people with severe mental problems, the coping strategies of people hearing voices and the role of social conditions and relationships in mental health and recovery.

Interests: Resilience and recovery, hearing voices

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Gill Thornton

Country: Wales

Background: Gill is the Acting Clinical Director, Mental Health Services for Abertewe Bro Morgannyg University Health Board.
She has extensive experience in the role of a Clinical Psychologist in a CMHT, working in a multidisciplinary team to provide a wide range of Psychological assessments, formulations and interventions to a population with diverse and complex needs. She is interested in developing the availability of psychological interventions in primary care such as brief interventions and stresspac. Gill has published two papers on this topic.
Gill represented the profession of Psychology on various National Committees these include Welsh Assembly Government Implementation Advisory Group for the Mental Health National Service Framework, the Community Mental Health Team Policy Implementation Guidance Group and the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies in Wales Group. She has been a member of the All Wales Applied Psychologists in Health and Social Care, National Specialty Advisory Group since January 2000 and during that time she held elected officer status first as secretary then as Chair from November 2006 through to December 2009.
In March 2010 she was appointed to the role of Clinical Lead for the Adult Service Group within the Mental Health Directorate in an acting capacity. This was made a substantive post in November 2010 and part of my responsibilities involved deputising for the Clinical Director and taking responsibility for the service modernisation.
Since April 2012 Gill has taken on the role of Acting Clinical Director for the Mental Health Directorate. Historically she deputised in this role since December 2010.

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Rachel Waddingham

Country: England

Background: Rachel has her own consultancy and training organisation called Behind the Label. She is baed in Kent, england. Rai was the manager of the London Hearing Voices Project at Mind in Camden until 2014, developing innovative projects to support young people who hear voices and bring Hearing Voices Groups to prisons. She is a trustee of the National Hearing Voices Network, a member of Intervoiceís International Research Committee, an independent trainer/consultant (with Behind The Label Training & Consultancy) and a media spokesperson.
Being a voice hearer herself and having spent more than 14 years in the psychiatric system, Rai is passionate about the role of self help and peer support in recovery from extreme states of mind. She is particularly interested in the link between trauma, dissociation and psychosis, as well as holistic approaches which support people to make sense of their experiences. Rai is committed to increasing the range of alternatives available within, and without, the mental health system.

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Benna Waites

Country: Wales

Background: Benna is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist working for Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, Wales. She is Joint Head of Psychology, Counselling and Arts Therapies in South East Wales. As professional Head of Psychology, Counselling and Arts Therapies for Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, a post which I job shares with Dr. Kathryn Walters. She provides professional leadership for around 100 staff within the Health Board. She also sit son the National Partnership Board representing applied psychologists.

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Rob Warriner

Country: New Zealand

Background: Since 2003, Rob has been employed as the CEO of WALSH Trust; an NGO (nongovernment organisation) providing a range of mental health support services in Auckland, New Zealand.
He is Trustee of Platform Trust, a member of the NGO-Ministry of Health Working Group, and the NZ Mental Health Commission Reference Group.
Rob began his mental health career in 1993. He holds tertiary qualifications in psychology and education and completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Management and Administration in 2001. In 2011 he completed a High Performance Leadership programme at Oxford University, United Kingdom.
Rob has been published internationally; most recently a paper entitled ìClothing the Emperorî arguing the need for fundamental change in mental health service provision. He has also presented at conferences in New Zealand, Australia, UK and Europe on topics ranging from ëemployment for people who experience mental illnessí, to ëmental health reformí.

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Clarissa Webster

Country: Brazil

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Jayne Whitney

Country: Wales

Background: Jane is a psychiatric nurse and ward manager at Neath, Wales. Jayne has worked in Mental Health since 1997. She began as a support worker in an out of hours team/crisis team up until 2008 when she qualified as a Mental Health Nurse. Jayne has worked within the community as a Community Psychiatric Nurse and within an inpatient care setting. Jayne is currently the Ward Manager at Ward F, an acute inpatient unit at Neath Port Talbot Hospital. Jayne has been part of the ABMU learning sets and has played an active role. Jayne over the last year has taken the lead on developing sustainable recovery philosophies and culture changes within the ward environment.

Interests: Hearing Voices Groups

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Carly Williams

Country: Wales

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Jan Woodward

Country: England

Background: Whole Life Programme Manager/Lead, Hertfordshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Interests: Whole-life recovery, policy, implementation and practice

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Pablo Valente

Country: Brazil

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