30 November 2017

CNWL NHS staff set to star on Radio 1

Members of staff from CNWL will be heard on BBC Radio 1's Newsbeat programme next week as part of the station's My Mind & Me season.

The forthcoming programme involved staff from CNWL's Addiction, Recovery, Community, Hillingdon Service (Arch), its Eating Disorders Service for Children and Young People in Nightingale Place; and the Park Royal Mental Health Unit in Brent.

CNWL staff were asked about how they support and treat people as part of the programme's efforts to get more people talking about mental health.

The programmes will air on December 4, 5 and 7 respectively at 12.45pm and as part of the 5.45pm news, with clips of audio diaries from some of the station's listeners who themselves have mental health problems.

Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist Dr Philippa Buckley from the Eating Disorders Service said: "Eating disorders are a serious group of mental illnesses which can have devastating consequences for the sufferers and their families.

"They affect people of all backgrounds and come in all shapes and sizes. Fortunately, recovery can and does happen, particularly with early intervention.

"The involvement of Parents and carers in treatment is key."

Lead Addictions Psychologist Dr Deepti Shah-Armon said: "Many people turn to drink or drugs as a way of dealing with negative feelings, such as depression, stress, trauma or anxiety.

"We work with people at any stage of their alcohol or drug difficulties to provide a single point of access to assessment and treatment, for problems.

"We recognise the importance of providing treatment for both the substance misuse problem, as well as any associated emotional / mental health issues."

Brent Borough Clinical Director, Dr Bill Tiplady, said: "I hope that listeners will learn more about these conditions and also understand our part in helping people make their first steps towards recovery.

"In mental health crisis services we see people at their most distressed and vulnerable. Keeping people safe and helping them make their way through a crisis is complex and demanding and a range of approaches and therapies play an important role. Ultimately the aim is to help people get back into their lives and communities."

CNWL Chief Executive Claire Murdoch said: "We want people to talk about mental health and not be scared to do so, and seek help when they have problems. Programmes like this help shine a light on our work and on mental health so do tune in and listen."

Newsbeat presenter Tina Daheley said: "I'm really proud of the work Newsbeat has done to make all the content around My Mind and Me. It's great that young people trusted us to help them share their experiences of living with mental health conditions. This will hopefully help normalise conversations around mental health."

A documentary featuring four Radio 1 listeners will be released on Monday, 4 December on BBC iPlayer, and there will be online articles and social content to support the above topics each day. In addition to this there will be a series of daily podcasts, the first of which will be released on Friday, 8 December, while Radio 4's PM show is set to pick up some of the content.

For more details:

Contact Senior Communications Officer Jeremy Dunning on 0203 214 5756 or emailjeremy.dunning@nhs.net

Editors' notes

Details about My Mind & Me are on this link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04qvqpy

Photos of Claire Murdoch are attached.

Photos of Tina Daheley are available via the BBC press office.

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust
Stephenson House, 75 Hampstead Road, London NW1 2PL
Tel: 020 3214 5756 e-mail:communications.cnwl@nhs.net