Job id: 105105. Salary: £43,455 – £61,833 inclusive of London Weighting.

Posted: 22 January 2025. Closing date: 16 February 2025.

Business unit: IoPPN. Department: Psychological Medicine.

Contact details: Dr Latha Velayudhan. latha.velayudhan@kcl.ac.uk

Location: Denmark Hill. Category: Research.

About King’s:

From its earliest years, the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) has been fundamentally changing and shaping how we understand, prevent and treat mental illness and other conditions that affect the brain. The legacy, ethos and drive of the IoPPN has ensured its position at the forefront of mental health care, redefining mental illness, its treatment and its place in society.

The IoPPN is divided into 14 academic departments across three major academic Schools: Academic Psychiatry, Mental Health & Psychological Sciences, and Neuroscience.

The Department of Psychological Medicine, part of the School of Academic Psychiatry, focuses on the interface between psychiatry and medicine, psychiatry and occupation, psychiatry and the military, and psychiatry in different settings. We embrace research, education and clinical translation to further understand and improve mental health and treat disorders of the brain, and train the next generation of researchers and practitioners, as well as informing the wider community. As a world leading research centre, we provide an environment that offers:

research and clinical expertise

support for students in their career aspirations and goals

a collegiality and network of researchers

This role will also involve working closely with Prof. Sagnik Bhattacharyya based in the Department of Psychosis Studies. Part of the School of Academic Psychiatry, they are one of the world’s leading centres for research into psychotic disorders.

About the role:

This is an exciting position where the successful candidate will have the opportunity to work as part of an internationally leading team of researchers investigating biological bases of neuro-psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders and the mechanism of action of treatments. The team has a particular interest in investigating the mechanism of action of cannabinoids and a key component of this program of work will involve the application of cutting-edge neuroimaging techniques (such as fMRI) to investigate the neural substrates underpinning the harmful effects of recreational cannabis use as well as potential therapeutic effects of cannabinoids. As part of this role, the appointed person will be directly involved in a multi-centre Parkinson’s UK funded randomised clinical trial to evaluate a new pharmacological treatment for people with Parkinson’s disease and Psychosis.

The position is ideally suited for specialty trainees (either from Psychiatry/ Neurology /Geriatric Medicine) interested in the overlap between neurology and neuropsychiatry and interested in developing experience and skills in Parkinson’s disease and clinical trials, in addition to gaining valuable experience in neuroimaging and neuropsychopharmacology.

The successful applicant will play a key role in the assessment and monitoring of patients with Parkinson’s disease taking part in the study and along with a team of researchers will contribute to the collection of clinical trial and neuroimaging data. The applicant will receive appropriate training and supervision in the assessment of motor and non-motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease; neuroimaging data processing and analysis; and any other relevant training and will work closely with other research and clinical staff working on the project, fostering effective working relationships with appropriate local services (e.g., Parkinson’s clinics at King’s College Hospital and Liaison and Geriatric Psychiatry at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust).

The person will be based in the Department of Psychological Medicine, School of Academic Psychiatry, IoPPN at KCL and will work closely with Dr Latha Velayudhan(https://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/dr-latha-velayudhan) and other investigators based at King’s College London, in particular Prof Sagnik Bhattacharyya(https://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/professor-sagnikbhattacharyya), based in the department of Psychosis Studies at King’s College London. They will also interact with clinical fellows, research assistants, postdoctoral researchers and PhD students working in the group.

The position is ideally suited for specialty trainees (either from Neurology/Psychiatry/Geriatric Medicine) interested in the overlap between neurology and neuropsychiatry and interested in developing experience and skills in Parkinson’s disease and clinical trials, in addition to gaining valuable experience in neuroimaging and neuropsychopharmacology.

This is a full-time, fixed term post, currently funded until 1st of September 2025, with potential for extension. The successful candidate will be encouraged to apply for clinical research training fellowships to support an MD/PhD.

About You:

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

Desirable criteria

Full details of the role and the skills and experience required, can be found in the attached job description which provided on the next page.

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King’s.
We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’ pages.

This role does meet the requirements of the Home Office and therefore we are able to offer sponsorship for candidates who require the right to work in the UK.

Job id: 104885. Salary: £43,455- £64,288 per annum, plus London Weighting Allowance.

Posted: 21 January 2025. Closing date: 09 February 2025.

Business unit: IoPPN. Department: Psychosis Studies.

Contact details: Thomas Pollak or Amy Aldridge. thomas.pollak@kcl.ac.uk & amy.l.aldridge@kcl.ac.uk

Location: Denmark Hill. Category: Research.

About us:

This is an exciting opportunity to gain and develop research skills. The post-holder will join Dr Tom Pollak’s research group and play a key role in innovative studies taking a new immunologically focussed approach to understanding and treating neuropsychiatric disorders.

The group is investigating how the immune system may hold clues to how psychosis and other psychiatric disorders are caused and how people respond to treatments. We will investigate blood and cerebrospinal fluid from patients and use machine-learning to identify the treatment-relevant immune processes, with an emphasis on immune cells, autoantibodies and inflammatory markers. If we can show causal links, our work could guide future targeted immune-based interventions.

The studies involve subject recruitment and collection of clinical data and bio samples (blood and cerebrospinal fluid) from patients. The main focus is on an exciting new prospective, longitudinal study aiming to assess the immunological effects of antipsychotic treatment. It is being led by a team from KCL and the Francis Crick Institute and is unique for its interdisciplinary nature, combining expertise from clinical psychiatry, immunology and neuroscience, with significant ongoing input from people with lived experience of psychosis. The post-holder will have a central role in the team and will contribute to its dynamic, friendly and supportive culture, and to its strong spirit of multidisciplinary scientific enquiry.

The Department of Psychosis Studies is one of the world’s leading centres for research into psychotic disorders. We aim to advance the understanding and treatment of psychotic disorders across all stages to improve the lives of patients and their families. Our staff include clinical and non-clinical scientists with a wide range of expertise and are recognised globally as innovators of high-quality translational research.

About the role:

The purpose of this role is to deliver exciting and innovative research studies in the Department of Psychosis Studies. Working closely with the Lead Investigators, the post holder will ensure the successful conduct and completion of the research programme.

They will contribute to the collection and analysis of data and play a key role in the assessment and monitoring of participants. They will also work closely with other research staff in the project and foster effective collaborative working relationships with the local and regional services for psychosis, as well as neurology, rheumatology and neuropsychiatry services. The successful candidate will also be encouraged to deliver teaching on immunopsychiatry topics and will have the opportunity to join a unique and growing clinical immunopsychiatry service.

The post-holder will have opportunities to get involved in data analysis and develop their research interests within the projects. Training in research methods will be provided, and the post-holder will develop skills in using gold-standard diagnostic and clinical ratings, which will be useful for future research and clinical practice.

The post would be ideal for a clinician with an interest in the rapidly expanding field of immunopsychiatry. There is potential to develop a project for an MD/ PhD application for a suitable candidate. The start date is flexible and may be negotiated with the right candidate.

This is a full-time post (35 Hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract for 12 months.

About you:

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

Desirable criteria

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King’s.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’ pages.

We are not able to offer sponsorship for candidates who do not currently possess the right to work in the UK