The Royal ANZ College of Psychiatrist Conference 2011

Theme: Psychiatry in the field 'Cultivating and Diversifying Our expertise?'
Date: 28 30 September 2011
Venue: Millennium and Copthorne Hotels, Queenstown
Keynote speakers: Prof Anthony Dowell, Prof Des Gorman, Prof Ian Hickie, Prof John Mann, Prof Sandy McFarlane

The full conference program is available at www.ranzcp2011.co.nz/programme

Conference highlights include:

Prof Peter Ellis, University of Otago Is it childhood abuse, or the memory of abuse, that leads to mental disorders? Trauma in childhood is commonly seen as leading to later mental health problems. However, the data supporting this rests largely on retrospective recall of abuse, which leaves open the question of whether it is the memory of trauma, or the trauma itself, which leads to later problems. This presentation explores the relationships between historically recorded abuse, retrospectively recalled abuse and 12 month and lifetime mental health disorders by matching child protection data with the results of the New Zealand Mental Health Survey.

Prof Sandy McFarlane, University of Adelaide The prolonged and unanticipated impact of traumatic stress A striking lesson from history has been the challenge to understand how trauma exposure, such as war service, can lead to the emergence of a psychiatric disorder many years after the traumatic exposure. The lack of acceptance of the long-term effect of traumatic stress has meant that many ex-servicemen who later developed post-traumatic stress disorder have been denied relevant compensation for their war related psychiatric morbidity.

Dr Erik Monasterio, University of Otago Personality characteristics in a population of risk-taking "extreme" sports people (BASE jumpers and mountaineers) Risk-taking sports encompass a number of outdoor activities associated with high-risk of injury. This presentation will discuss a study aiming to examine the personality characteristics of participants in mountaineering and BASE jumping, the frequency and severity of accidents and to determine whether there is a particular personality profile associated with risk-taking in sport.

Prof Sarah Romans, University of Otago Mood and the menstrual cycle: results from the Mood in Daily Life study Premenstrual mood symptoms are thought common in most women, even those without premenstrual dysphoric disorder. The existing literature provides a confusing picture about any links between mood and menstrual cycle phase. This presentation will examine time series, mood data for specific premenstrual mood cyclicity and compare the influence on mood of menstrual cycle phase with physical health, perceived stress and social support.

Dr Cameron Lacey, University of Otago Ethnic disparities between Maori and non-Maori non-Pacific in the use of seclusion in adult psychiatric inpatient services of New Zealand In New Zealand, the limited data on seclusion use indicates that Maori psychiatric inpatients have a higher risk of seclusion than non-Maori. This presentation will discuss a study investigating disparities between Maori and non-Maori non-Pacific in the use of seclusion in general adult psychiatric inpatient units of New Zealand.

Prof Anthony Dowell, University of Otago Bridges and ditches, pathways and gates: models of working across the primary secondary interface from a primary care perspective General practice and primary care participate in the management of a broad range of psychological problems experienced by patients. This presentation will use national and international examples of models of care to discuss effectively working across the primary secondary interface, to blur the distinction and definition of that interface and pose the question "What use is a GP, psychological therapist and psychiatrist for mental disorder in 2011?"

Prof Des Gorman, Health Workforce New Zealand, The National Health Board, The University of Auckland On the rescue of psychiatry The demand for mental health care is likely to double over the next decade. Whereas the base for some health services is robust, Treasury estimates that more than half of the burgeoning health-related welfare budget is due to unmet mental health needs. Against this current shortfall, and forthcoming challenge, is a significant decline in interest in training in psychiatry. The reinvigoration of psychiatry to substantially increase the recruitment of trainees, along with overseas trained specialists, and to both increase the productivity of psychiatrists and to retain them at work in New Zealand is a key objective of current health planning and funding.

Prof John Mann, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York Clinical and neurobiological predictors of suicidal behaviour A stress diathesis model has been found to both describe the risk for suicidal behaviour in a way that makes more sense to clinicians than a list of clinical and demographic risk factors, and to highlight the most important risk factors for the clinician to aid in screening at-risk patients. Clinicians cannot yet use such biological predictors but progress is being made that will enhance the information from a clinical evaluation and at the same time inform us about the neurobiological phenotype underlying the predisposition to suicidal behaviour.

SOURCE: The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists
ENDS

© Scoop Media