Multidisciplinary teams

Our medical care team consists of consultant psychiatrists and registrar psychiatrists (these are graduate doctors in training to become consultant psychiatrists).

A psychiatrist is a physician (a medical doctor) who specialises in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of mental, addictive and emotional disorders.

Our psychiatrists are trained in the medical, psychological and social components of mental, emotional and behavioural disorders. They utilise a broad range of treatment modalities, including diagnostic tests, prescribing medications, psychotherapy, and helping patients and their families cope with stress and crises. 

Here at St Patrick's Mental Health Services (SPMHS), our consultant psychiatrists specialise in various mental health disorders.

Our consultants

Social work help is provided through information, advice, counselling and advocacy. It is often directed towards enabling service users to deal more effectively with matters of social and emotional concern which may affect themselves and their dependants, and to access potentially beneficial services and resources relevant to various aspects of life; these include rehabilitation, social care, the protection of children and vulnerable adults, income maintenance, accommodation and welfare rights. 

At SPMHS, a number of our social workers are also systemic family therapists.

What do pharmacists do?

Pharmacists work with our medical and nursing colleagues to promote safe and effective use of medicines.  

A pharmacist will come and see you soon after admission to talk with you about the medicines you were taking before admission and to make sure nothing has been missed.  

We attend team meetings to discuss the most appropriate medicines for you; we check the medicines prescribed for you are safe for you; order these medicines for you; and give you information about new medicines that have been prescribed.

You can also ask to speak with one of us about your medicines if you have any questions or concerns.

Use this link to Learn about mental health conditions, treatments and medications.

Our dispensary services are provided mainly for outpatients and discharge prescriptions.  

We are unable to dispense medical card prescriptions but we do accept Drug Payments Scheme cards. 

Opening hours 

Monday-Friday, 9am–1pm and 2pm-5pm.

Contact

Chief Pharmacist: Ciara Ni Dhubhlaing

Telephone: 01 249 3256

Email: pharmacy@stpatsmail.com

Address: St Patrick's University Hospital, James' Street, Dublin 8, Ireland

What is occupational therapy?

Occupational therapy is a profession concerned with what we do in our daily lives (our occupation) and how this both affects and is affected by our health.

Occupation includes:

• Looking after yourself (self-care)
• Enjoying your life and being with others (leisure and social life)
• Being productive (for example, work or college activities).

The main goal of occupational therapy is to support you to take part in the everyday activities that matter to you. Occupational therapy aims to contribute to your sense of wellbeing, independence and satisfaction in daily life.

What do occupational therapists do?

Occupational therapists are members of the MDT. You may work with an occupational therapist on a programme or for one-to-one meetings.

Examples of work you might do with an occupational therapist include:

• Completing an assessment to identify your current needs and concerns
• Exploring lifestyle changes and set related goals to support your recovery
• Developing skills to help you live more independently
• Finding ways to make your daily activities easier or more enjoyable
• Developing a balanced and satisfying routine
• Getting ideas or information to help you take part in leisure or community activities
• Identifying social supports and outlets you might find helpful
• Preparing for your discharge from hospital and to stay well at home.

Why occupational therapy?

• Occupational therapists understand how illness or challenging life events can impact a person’s ability to do the things that are important for them.
• Occupational therapists understand how activity and health are linked and work with people to maintain the life roles and activities that support their health.
• Occupational therapists use evidence-based information in their practice to enable people to live their lives in a meaningful and satisfying way.
• Occupational therapists take a person-centered approach which emphasises a person’s strengths and preferences.
• Occupational therapists recognise and promote the rights of people of all abilities to take part in the activities of everyday life.

Is occupational therapy relevant to me?

Occupational therapists support people with all types of mental health issues. Occupational therapy is concerned with how these issues may impact your ability to do the things that are important to you. Because you are a unique person, your occupational therapy plan will be specific to your needs and priorities.

If you are referred to occupational therapy, the first step is to complete an assessment which will help you and your occupational therapist decide if occupational therapy may be right for you at this time.

How do I access occupational therapy services?

Referrals to occupational therapy are made during weekly team meetings. Not everyone who comes into hospital is referred for occupational therapy. Referral is based on your individual needs and care plan.

If you think occupational therapy may be helpful to your recovery, you can speak about this further with your team.

Where can I get more information about occupational therapy?

For more information on occupational therapy, see the following websites:

• Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland
• British Association of Occupational Therapists

What is nursing?

Nursing is the use of clinical judgement in the provision of care to enable people to improve, maintain, or recover health, to cope with health problems and to achieve the best possible quality of life, whatever their disease or disability, until death (Royal College of Nursing, 2014).

What do nurses do?

Our nurses work in a diverse range of settings across our service.

Ward-based nurses provide care and treatment 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The type of care and level of intervention provided by nurses is individualised and dependent upon the service user’s needs. However, the care delivered encourages independence and is underpinned by a recovery-orientated philosophy.

Nurses provide many types of interventions at ward level including:

• Assessment
• Psychoeducation
• Supportive observation
• Supportive counselling
• Assistance with the performance of basic activities of living
• Working with you to develop your mental health literacy
• Delivery of our inpatient Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP) programme
• Working with the service user on the development of their initial individual care plan.

A number of our nurses work in specialist areas including:

• Admission and Assessment Unit
• Nurse Education & Practice Development
• Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy
• ECT Department
• Wellness andRecovery Service
• Support and Information Line and the Dean Clinics.

Nurses also fulfil specialist and advanced practice roles in all clinical programmes, such as assessment, psychotherapy and facilitation of therapeutic groups. These programmes include:

• Depression
• Bipolar disorder
• Anxiety disorders
• Eating disorders
• Young adult
• Care of the elderly
• Psychosis recovery.

 All members of the MDT, including nurses, also undertake the role of key worker. 

In addition to clinical psychologists working within MDTs, the Clinical Psychology Department runs a number of psychology-based therapeutic programmes both at an inpatient and day service level.