City researchers part of £3.5m mental health research hub

The Centre for Mental Health Research at City, University of London is part of a new £3.5 million research hub that aims to improve diagnosis, treatment and support for people experiencing severe mental illness (SMI).

SMIs arise from a complex interplay of biological, psychological and social factors, but the hub aims to generate new knowledge on the role of social determinants (the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live and age) in influencing the course and outcomes of SMIs, focusing on psychosis, depression and bipolar disorder. It is estimated that more than 500,000 people are living with an SMI in England.

Supported by the Medical Research Council (MRC), the hub hosted by Queen Mary will focus in particular on 'Building recovery and resilience in severe mental illness: Leveraging the role of social determinants in illness trajectories and interventions’. It is one of five research hubs that comprise the UK Research and Innovation’s new £22.5 million mental health platform, and it will bring together researchers from a wide range of disciplines and institutions.

The project consists of three work streams:

• Workstream 1 will use state-of-the-art machine learning predictive models to analyse longitudinal, secondary datasets. These datasets will contain nationwide clinical data on individuals with various SMIs.
• Workstream 2 will collect new information from a cohort of 600 patients with SMIs. The researchers will specifically focus on the quantity and quality of interpersonal exchanges, relationships and support networks across social spheres.
• Workstream 3 will explore two forms of community-based social intervention – social prescribing and community organising – in supporting patients with SMIs.

Professor Rose McCabe, Professor of Clinical Communication and the Co-Director of The Centre for Mental Health Research at City, will contribute expertise in social relationships and approaches to improving the lives of people diagnosed with a severe mental illness, with a focus on increasing agency and quality of life.

Professor McCabe said:

Severe mental illness, such as psychosis, bipolar disorder and depression, affects nearly 10% of the population. Although we know that social contact improves quality of life, many people are socially isolated. Our hub will focus on understanding and improving the quality of social contacts – along with in neighbourhoods and communities – as it could play a crucial role in recovery and better quality of life.