GP blog on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy in treatment of insomnia
Helen Price, Cognitive Behavioural Therapist at St Patrick’s Mental Health Services explores insomnia; looking at how cognitive behavioural therapy can be used in the treatment of insomnia, why it is the preferred treatment approach for insomnia and the benefits of treating insomnia.
Eating disorders programmes accepting referrals from GPs
• Binge Eating Disorder Programme: This programme is designed to support people who are experiencing difficulties with binge eating symptoms and behaviours. The Binge Eating Disorder Programme is a recovery-focused group programme that aims to help people develop a range of skills that stabilise and improve symptoms and behaviours associated with binge eating.
For more information about the programme, click here.
• Eating Disorders Day Care Programme: The Eating Disorders Day Care Programme provides care for people over the age of 18 who are experiencing anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder, and also offers treatment to people with eating disorder symptoms caused by other mental health difficulties.
For more information about the programme, click here.
• Eating Disorders Treatment Information Programme: This programme is a one-day multidisciplinary team-led group programme for those who are experiencing eating difficulties and who would like to learn more about recovery from eating disorders, and the treatment options available.
For more information about the programme, click here.
• Compassion-Focused Therapy for Eating Disorders (CFT-E): CFT-E is an evidence-based group programme offering comprehensive psychological therapy for people who can manage recovery from their eating disorder in the community. The group is open to all those with an eating disorder diagnosis. Assessment for CFT-E begins in December and the pre-group psychoeducation sessions are scheduled for 28 January and 4 March ahead of the programme starting on 25 March 2026.
For more information about the programme, click here.
Older adult programmes at St Patrick’s Mental Health Services
• Living Well with Mild Cognitive Impairment: This group programme offers support for people in managing the emotional, cognitive and practical elements of a mild cognitive impairment diagnosis. The programme runs on a rolling structure and new members can be added to the current cycle pending assessment of suitability.
• SAGE: This group therapy programme is designed to address mental health difficulties in older adults whose coping style involves patterns of emotional suppression, distance in relationships, and maintaining a high level of standards and routines.
• Compassion-Focused Therapy for Older Adults: This group therapy programme is designed for older adults who experience high levels of self-criticism and shame which may be underlying their mental health difficulties. It supports adults to cultivate compassion in their lives and reduce self-criticism and shame.
• The Older Adult Formulation Group: This group has been specifically designed for older adults who are interested in developing a psychological understanding of their mental health difficulties.
More information about the older adult programmes at SPMHS is available here.
Psychology Skills Group for Adolesecents open for referrals
The Psychology Department at SPMHS is accepting GP referrals for its Psychology Skills Group for Adolescents (PSGA). PSGA is a psychological group therapy for young people, aged 14 to 18, who are experiencing a range of mental health difficulties such as emotional dysregulation, low mood, anxiety or eating disorders. The group takes place online via Microsoft Teams, with referrals accepted on a rolling basis every four to six weeks.
For more information on PSGA, click here.
Founder’s Day 2025: Register now for free CPD-recognised annual mental health conference
St Patrick’s Mental Health Services’ annual Founder’s Day conference is taking place online on Friday, 28 November from 9.00am to 1.00pm. The 2025 conference theme is ‘mental health in turbulent times’ and will explore issues such as psychiatry in humanitarian emergencies, ‘megatrends’ impacting youth mental health, digital determinants of mental health, the impact of the climate crisis and building resilience. Registration is free but essential. CPD accreditation has been sought from the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP), with points to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
Click here to register.
Celebrating five years of Your Portal: Supporting recovery through innovation
This year marks five years since the launch of Your Portal, our secure online platform designed to support service users on their mental health recovery journeys at St Patrick’s Mental Health Services (SPMHS).
Since its launch in 2020, Your Portal has been at the forefront of digital innovation in Irish mental healthcare. The platform has empowered service users to take an active role in their care, strengthened communication with care teams, and enhanced collaboration with supporters and healthcare professionals.
To celebrate this milestone, we hosted a special five-year anniversary event on 13 November, bringing together service users, staff, and supporters for an evening of reflection, discussion, and shared learning about the evolution and future of Your Portal.
Read our five-year anniversary blog on Your Portal here.
Research from St Patrick’s Mental Health Services and Trinity College Dublin published in JAMA Psychiatry
A major research study led by St Patrick’s Mental Health Services (SPMHS) and Trinity College Dublin has been published in JAMA Psychiatry. The study examined the potential benefits of using the drug ketamine as an add-on treatment for people receiving inpatient care for depression.
While ketamine has been attracting attention internationally for its possible antidepressant effects, this large-scale randomised clinical trial found that repeated doses did not provide extra benefit beyond standard treatment. These findings add important clarity to ongoing discussions around new and emerging therapies for depression and underscore the importance of rigorous, evidence-based research in guiding clinical practice.
Read the research paper here.
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Group Cognitive Behavioural Therapy in the treatment of Insomnia