BPS Scottish Branch & Division of Counselling Psychology Scotland AGM

Dr Suzy O'Connor (NHS Education for Scotland) - Mental Health Post-pandemic

Suzy will discuss The Health & Wellbeing Census Scotland 2021/22 and the 'Your Mental Health & Wellbeing Report' the deliverables of the Scottish Government's Joint Delivery Board Workforce Development Task & Finish Group along with the work of NES Psychology Directorate.

Dr Zoe Black (Sport Psychologist, Scottish Institute of Sport) - Mental Health in Youth Athletes

This session will firstly outline and discuss some of the key challenges facing youth athletes and their mental health including; social media usage, parental pressures, and early professionalisation and specialisation. Second, it will discuss how mental health and the stigma surrounding it is currently affecting sport participation and development. It will encourage attendees to consider how we as practitioners can better utilise sport and physical activity, as a mechanism through which we can understand and support the mental health of young people. Finally, it will discuss the challenges we face in better preparing coaches and parents to understand and work with youth athletes experiencing mental health challenges.

Dr Liza Morton (Chartered & Registered Counselling Psychologist) - Introducing 'Healing hearts and Minds: A holistic approach to coping well with congenital heart disease'

Liza recently co-authored Healing Hearts and Minds: A holistic approach to coping well with congenital heart disease' published by Oxford University Press, New York in January 2023.  The book provides evidence-based coping and self-care skills for adults living with Congenital Heart Disease (CHD).

CHD is the most common birth defect, affecting almost 1 in 100 babies born in the UK. With great advances in surgery and medicine, over 90% of babies with CHD now survive to adulthood. However, throughout their entire lives they can face surgeries, invasive treatments, lifelong monitoring, medical check-ups, and limitations on physical activity, in addition to poor public awareness which can have an impact on social inclusion and understanding. Little attention, has been paid to the psychosocial impacts on these individuals, especially as they grow, mature, and become adults living with a serious, chronic medical condition. From feeling self-conscious about scars any limitations on physical activity and sense of loss around so many of life's little normalcies, to difficulties accessing recommended specialist care, living in constant fear of an emergency, and the impact on education, career, finances, relationships and parenting this condition can be ever-present.

Lifetime prevalence rates for anxiety, depression, and PTSD is 50% for people living with CHD than the general adult population. The co-authors of Healing Hearts and Minds, Liza Morton and Tracy Livecchi, are mental health professionals and advocates living with CHD dependent on pioneering care from infancy.   In this book they aim to give others access to the resources and support they have been looking for their entire adult lives. This is the first book to focus on the psychosocial, emotional, and practical challenges in living with CHD and it helps to create a plan for healthy coping strategies to support people living with CHD, their families, and healthcare professionals and give anyone living with this condition the empowerment tools necessary to move forward productively in adulthood.

Dr Wendy Maltinsky (Chair DHP Scotland, Senior Lecturer University of Stirling) - The Times They Are a Changing

This talk will explore the principles and constructs of behavioural science, its use during the pandemic and its value (and limitations) in supporting individuals and health and social care practitioners post-pandemic in health and social care contexts. She will present some of her own work in global health and digital health and this will lead to a discussion of the potential for the science to be applied to a wider context of change. Wendy will discuss difficult issues around who's behaviour needs to change and why change may be complex.