The Cambridge Drug and Alcohol Service based at the Mill House, Brookfields Hospital , consists of health and social services personnel working within a multi-disciplinary team to provide a comprehensive range of services in a community setting. The service consists of a number of overlapping components – Community Drug and Alcohol Team, Pharmacy with Supervised Dispensing, access to In-patient Detoxification on a Psychiatric Ward, Criminal Justice Team, Liaison Team to General & Maternity Hospitals and a Smoking Cessation Service. There are specific links to the Homeless Agencies, Liaison Psychiatric Service, Maternity Service and its ‘sister' drug agency, the Bridge Project. It has close links with the University Department of Psychiatry and a wide range of research has been carried out in collaboration with the Departments of Experimental Psychology, Public Health, Hepatology and Psychiatry. The service is a member of ENTER Mental Health, a European research and training network and is a partner in a multi-centre three year study in Occupational Stress in Mental Health Workers and another three year follow up study on Dual Diagnosis. In collaboration with the University of Cambridge , the Masters in Health Studies (MSt) in Primary and Community Care has been expanded to include modules in the Management of Substance Misuse. The Service consists of 16 nurses, 2 social workers, 4 doctors, 3 pharmacists and assistants and 4 administrative staff.

Care Services

There is a full range of services across all the age range with inpatient beds at Fulbourn, Addenbrookes and Ida Darwin Hospitals . George McKenzie House on Fulbourn Hospital provides intensive care inpatient treatment. Adult mental health services are sectorised by GP practice and there are four community mental health teams across the city and rural patches. Assertive outreach is being provided within the sector community teams. There is a separate rehabilitation service (CPRS) with close links to non statutory residential hostels and other agencies. The forensic psychiatry team has local inpatient beds, community nurses and a court referral scheme. The young people's psychiatric service (YPS) is based in a day centre which offers group therapy, family and other interventions. A consultant lead liaison psychiatry team is based in Addenbrookes Hospital . An early intervention service is being developed across the county and the provision of services for patients with eating disorders is under review.

Training Resources

The University Department of Psychiatry is part of the University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine and is situated in Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge . It includes Professor Peter Jones (Head of Department), Professor E Bullmore and Professor I Goodyer (Child and Adolescent Psychiatry). There are two readers, two senior lecturers and five university lecturers. A further professorship of Community Psychiatry with clinical responsibilities in Peterborough is under discussion. There are three Clinical Lecturers/Specialist Registrars in General Psychiatry, Child Psychiatry and the Psychiatry of Mental Handicap and NHS Specialist Registrar/ Clinical Lecturer posts in Old Age Psychiatry, Forensic Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. In addition, there are currently four Affiliated Lecturers, 20 Associate Lecturers (NHS consultants), 24 Research Staff, 12 Assistant Staff and 22 Graduate Students.

Current Research Issuses

Research in the Department of Psychiatry uses the disciplines of neuroimaging, cognitive neuropsychology (with pharmacological manipulation), molecular biology, endocrinology and epidemiology to investigate psychological health and disease in clinical and general population contexts. There is a strong focus on the relevance of a life course approach and on the integration of basic, clinical and population sciences. Affective disorder, psychosis, cognitive function including learning disability and dementias and developmental disorders manifest in childhood are areas of interest.

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