Being part of the conversation: Reflecting on Psychological Professions Week 2025

Gita Bhutani, Co-Chair of the PPN North West

To create the ship is not to weave the fabrics, to forge the nails, to read the stars, but to inspire a longing for the sea - Antoine de Saint-Exupery

We’ve been reflecting on our current changing times in our blogs over Psychological Professions Week.   I think what’s emerged is the importance of meaning and identity as psychological professionals.   The importance of a home and a shared vision contributes to being able to stand for something.   This helps in dealing with challenge, change and choppy seas.   Being able to express ourselves and being able to be able to do it consistently over time has given us the opportunity to help people, services and the NHS change. 

So we know what helps us (and others) manage in tricky times?  We know how to sustain ourselves (this can include singing in the car).  We know that our voice makes an important and unique contribution to health and wellbeing.   We have partners and allies in other workforce groups and it is a privilege and pleasure to be able to work with a wider group on our shared goal of better health for all.

But what do we need to be able to continue this work?  We need to continue to be part of the conversation, we need to sit round the table, we need to be part of the new NHS and care leadership landscape.   If we are not there as psychological professions leaders then our voice is missing and the benefits to our patients/service users/carers will not not be realised.  

This is work that we all do in our regular work as clinicians, educators, and leaders.   I’m sure most of us have examples of how those conversations have helped change things for our patients/service users/carers.   These can include – supporting staff members’ wellbeing, formulation-based interventions, policies that enhance psychological wellbeing, training the clinicians of the future – to mention a few.  

Our collective work contributes to those changes and within the framework of large scale change – we do ‘lots of lots’ in enabling it.  Within that framework, fully sustainable change can require iterative cycles – which perhaps mirrors the iterative cycles of change in the NHS.  What may have worked before perhaps won’t be so welcome or successful now but could be again in the future.  Our challenge is to keep that freshness and enthusiasm (our ‘sea-legs’) to continue. 

Perhaps, our goal for now is ensuring we can keep ‘weaving the fabrics, forging the nails, reading the stars’ and inspiring a longing for improved psychological wellbeing.