1. What is the clinical advisory panel?
Bipolar UK have launched a Clinical Advisory Panel from across primary and secondary care.
It has six objectives:
- To ensure the charity’s advice and guidance is evidence-based and clinically sound, and to provide feedback on advice and ‘user test’ resources for clinicians.
- To share knowledge and expertise with the peer support services.
- To ensure our advocacy work is clinically sound and based on the best evidence-base.
- To become a reference group for academic literature and to provide case studies.
- To provide intelligence on frontline service delivery, in particular how policy filters through to make practical changes in delivery of health care.
- At a local level, individual panel members will act as a champion in their own NHS services and in the local media, advocating for quicker diagnosis, specialist bipolar services and peer support.
We are now inviting applications from clinicians who would like to join as a panel member. Details about how to get involved are below.
2. The Panel Steering Group
The Panel will be led by a Steering Group made up of a maximum of 14 members and be appointed by Bipolar UK staff in consultation with its two co-chairs, Professor Allan Young and Dr Aditya Sharma.
Current Steering Group members
- Professor Steven Bazire, Honorary Professor at the School of Pharmacy at the University of East Anglia in Norwich and Fellow of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and lead for www.choiceandmedication.org, which has over 75 subscribing organisations world-wide.
- Professor Carolyn Chew-Graham, GP Principal in Central Manchester and Professor of General Practice Research at Keele University
- Professor Guy Goodwin, Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Oxford
- Professor Ian Jones, Professor of Psychiatry and Honorary Consultant Perinatal Psychiatrist at Cardiff University and Director of the National Centre for Mental Health
- Stephen Jones, registered mental heath nurse and Professional Lead for Mental Health, Nursing Department, Royal College of Nursing
- Professor Steven Marwaha, Clinical Professorial Fellow at the Institute for Mental Health at the University of Birmingham
- Dr Nick Prior, psychiatrist and co-founder of Minderful, a mental fitness platform
- Dr Thomas Richardson, Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Southampton
- Dr Aditya Sharma, Clinical Senior Lecturer and Honorary Consultant in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Newcastle University
- Professor Daniel Smith, Chair of Psychiatry and Head of Division of Psychiatry at the University of Edinburgh
- Professor Allan Young, Chair of Mood Disorders and Director of the Centre for Affective Disorders in the Department of Psychological Medicine in the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London
The Panel Steering Group will include representatives from both primary and secondary care. It will ideally include at least one GP, psychiatrist, psychologist, pharmacist and nurse. Non-clinicians with academic expertise in bipolar will also be invited.
The Panel Steering Group will be led by two co-chairs. One permanent co-chair will sit on the Bipolar UK Board and a second, rotating co-chair will change annually.
The first rotating co-chairs are the retiring Bipolar UK Clinical Trustee Prof Allan Young and his replacement Dr Adi Sharma.
Bipolar UK will reserve the right to end the membership at any stage.
All Panel Steering Group members will serve for three years but can renew the term if the Bipolar UK Board approves or can retire at any stage.
The Panel Steering Group will routinely assess progress of the delivery of the Bipolar Commission recommendations.
The Panel Steering Group will meet three times a year (in autumn, winter and spring).
The Panel Steering Group will, from time to time, invite individuals with particular expertise to consult and advise Steering Group Members on specific projects.
3. Who can join?
To join the Bipolar UK Clinical Advisory Panel you must have expertise in bipolar disorder and its treatment and be committed to the bipolar pledge:
'I support quicker diagnosis and specialist treatment and support for everyone with bipolar'
4. How do I get involved?
All clinicians and academics who want to sign up to the bipolar pledge will be invited to join the Panel without any limitations on membership numbers, although we recognise that individual panel members will have different views on the specific details and priorities within the broad aim of the pledge.
To sign up, please fill in the fields below. The Bipolar UK team will then be in touch to confirm 'next steps'.
Sign up now
5. What will I be doing?
- The Panel will be managed by the Policy and Communication Manager, with input from the CEO and Deputy CEO.
- All activities will usually be conducted online or via email. Intensity of contact will vary and Panel members may form ‘task and finish’ groups on specific projects.
- Panel memberships will not be remunerated, though should any meetings be held in person the charity will cover pre-agreed travel expenses.
- All Panel members are free to retire at any stage.
6. Full Terms of Reference
The Panel will have six objectives:
- To ensure the charity’s advice and guidance is evidence-based and clinically sound, and to provide feedback on advice and ‘user test’ resources for clinicians.
- To share knowledge and expertise with the peer support services.
- To ensure our advocacy work is clinically sound and based on the best evidence-base.
- To become a reference group for academic literature and to provide case studies.
- To provide intelligence on frontline service delivery, in particular how policy filters through to make practical changes in delivery of health care.
- At a local level, individual panel members will act as a champion in their own NHS services and in the local media, advocating for quicker diagnosis, specialist bipolar services and peer support.
The Panel
- Panel members must have expertise in bipolar disorder and its treatment and be committed to the bipolar pledge of ‘I support quicker diagnosis and specialist treatment and support for everyone with bipolar’.
- All clinicians and academics who want to sign up to the bipolar pledge (above) will be invited to join the Panel without any limitations on membership numbers, although we recognise that individual panel members will have different views on the specific details and priorities within the broad aim of the pledge.
- The Panel will include representatives from both primary and secondary care - GPs, psychiatrists, psychologists, pharmacists and nurses. Non-clinicians with academic expertise in bipolar disorder will also be invited.
- The Panel will attempt to achieve a broad geographic spread but can admit clinicians from the same NHS organisation / university if their skills complement each other.
- Bipolar UK will reserve the right to end a membership at any stage.
- The Panel will be managed by the Policy and Communication Manager, with input from the CEO and Deputy CEO.
- All activities will usually be conducted virtually or via email. Intensity of contact will vary and Panel members may form ‘task and finish’ groups on specific projects.
- Panel memberships will not be remunerated, though should any meetings be held in person the charity will cover pre-agreed travel expenses.
- All Panel members are free to retire at any stage.
The Panel Steering Group
- The Panel will be led by a Steering Group made up of a maximum of 14 members.
- The Panel Steering Group will include representatives from both primary and secondary care. It will ideally include at least one GP, psychiatrist, psychologist, pharmacist and nurse. Non-clinicians with academic expertise in bipolar will also be invited.
- The Panel Steering Group will be selected by Bipolar UK staff in consultation with both co-chairs.
- The Panel Steering Group will be led by two co-chairs. One permanent co-chair will sit on the Bipolar UK Board and a second, rotating co-chair will change annually.
- The first rotating co-chairs will be the retiring Bipolar UK Clinical Trustee Prof Allan Young and his replacement Dr Adi Sharma.
- Bipolar UK will reserve the right to end the membership at any stage.
- All Panel Steering Group members will serve for three years but can renew the term if the Bipolar UK Board approves or can retire at any stage.
- The Panel Steering Group will routinely assess progress of the delivery of the Bipolar Commission recommendations.
- The Panel Steering Group will meet three times a year (in autumn, winter and spring).
- The Panel Steering Group will, from time to time, invite individuals with particular expertise to consult and advise Steering Group Members on specific projects.
Last updated: 24 July 2024