Mental Health, Ill Health, and Personality Disorder

Thursday 23 June 2016
ICO Conference Centre, London

Healthcare Conferences UK are pleased to announce that Professor George Vaillant, internationally renowned Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School who was for 32 years the Programme Director of the longitudinal Harvard Study of Adult Development, will be giving a keynote address at the ‘Mental Health, Ill Health and Personality Disorder'. Professor Vaillant’s extended address will focus on one of the most profound lessons from his ground-breaking research on development across the lifespan; namely, that any exploration of the links between positive mental health and psychopathology requires an understanding of adaptive involuntary coping – the so-called ‘mature defence mechanisms’.

“...Any exploration of the links between positive mental health and psychopathology requires an understanding of adaptive coping... Much of what is called mental illness is in fact the manifestation of an individual’s adaptive response to conflict...” Professor George Vaillant, Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School

Adults with particular underlying patterns of emotional regulation, expression of distress and interpersonal relating can attract a range of diagnoses. They frequently present to primary care with chronic anxiety, depression and somatising disorders. They can sometimes be given diagnoses of developmental disorders such as Autistic Spectrum Disorders and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in adulthood. Where their difficulties are severe, they are often diagnosed with ‘personality disorders’.

Drawing on research, clinical practice and theory, the conference will provide a crucial but often poorly understood psychodynamic perspective on individuals presenting with these types of complex chronic mental health issues. By highlighting the links between good mental health, ill health, psychopathology, and personality it will promote a deeper understanding of the elements of effective psychological and social interventions in this population.

The conference due to be held in London on Thursday 23rd June 2016 has been developed in partnership with The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust and is CPD certified.

To view the full programme and book visit the Healthcare Conferences UK website.
An early bird rate of £200 +vat is available until 30th April 2016.