Overview of the Forensic Psychiatry Training Scheme

Trainees rotate each year at the beginning of August.  Trainees will have considerable choice in influencing their clinical placements within the available options.

There are 5 posts available within the forensic psychiatry rotation based at Fromeside, a purpose built, eighty bedded, medium secure unit. The rotation allows for wide exposure to the sub-specialties within forensic psychiatry in a variety of settings and with a variety of consultant trainers over three years.

The current training programme director is Dr Paul Cantrell, based at Fromeside.

There are a number of consultants who take responsibility for educational supervision of advanced trainees.  These include:

Dr Paul Cantrell (Training Programme Director)

Dr Rosanne Macgregor-Morris

Dr Peter Wood

Dr Nicola Claxton

Dr Theresa Tartan (women’s service)

The service is sector based and you will be attached to one team. All are based in Fromeside. In this position the trainee has the opportunity to assess cases referred to medium security from the community as an outpatient, acute settings, low secure settings, high security and custodial settings.  Cases can be managed by the trainee with supervision, and routine work including liaison with the Ministry of Justice and writing Court and Tribunal Reports are included in the role.

It will be possible to have experience of working with the other consultants and it would also be possible to gain experience of assessment of, advice about and treatment of those with severe disorders of personality on account of our specialist personality disorder service which serves a wide variety of clients, the Pathfinder Service. It will also be possible for you to gain experience of a specialist service for women who have offended or require treatment and care in conditions of medium security. This service is in fact quaternary and provides such care to the whole of the South West of England. You will also gain experience of the development of assessment and treatment of patients who remain located in a custodial setting and weekly clinics are conducted by one of the consultants in HMP Bristol. It is also possible to conduct clinics in a female prison, HMP Eastwood Park. Furthermore it is possible to gain experience of offenders who may become patients who have not yet attained adult years in HMP YOI Ashfield.  There is the opportunity for exposure to the Court Assessment and Liaison Service and providing expert advice to the Courts within the catchment area.

It will be possible for you to gain experience of the continuing rehabilitation of detained patients whose care pathway takes them from conditions of medium security to low security through attachment to the High Dependency Rehabilitation Service at Wickham Unit.

The service provides liaison in the crucial year after discharge and experience of aftercare can be gained in this setting.

The programme allows for attendance at a full range of conventional weekly supervision with educational supervisors, journal clubs, reflective practice and group supervision, structured training days organised across both the local service and the wider Trust, together with the opportunity to work under specialist supervision in a more psychotherapeutic fashion within the Pathfinder Service.

There are a range of teaching opportunities available, including lectures and small groups, and multi-disciplinary audiences.

Finally there is the opportunity to gain experience in management and further exposure to training in audit and research.

The timetable below is an example, and fixed commitments vary between sector teams. There is flexibility with trainees being able to negotiate Prison, Special Interest and Research times.

Example of Timetable