Welcome to the Mental Elf. This website will help you find just what you need to keep up-to-date with all of the important and reliable mental health research and guidance.

Our team of mental health experts post blogs every week day with short and snappy summaries that highlight evidence-based publications relevant to mental health practice in the UK and further afield.

All of our blogs are free to read. This is important because our vision for this website is to facilitate a democratic conversation between patients, clinicians, researchers, carers, policy makers, health and social care professionals and others. It’s vital that this discussion takes place in a public space so we can learn from each other.

Our bloggers give their time for free and they are all really keen to contribute because they share our ethos for clearly communicating evidence-based research to anyone who is interested. This website is very much a group effort.

We scour over 500 sources of evidence (journals, databases, websites) every week, to find key guidance, systematic reviews and other high quality research and reports that will help make your practice more evidence-based. The selection process has no input from any external bodies, publishers, sponsors or commercial organisations.

No bias, no misinformation, no spin, just what you need.

Who started the Mental Elf?

The blog was started by André Tomlin in May 2011. André’s an Information Scientist and has worked in mental health since the late nineties, formerly at the University of Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Mental Health and since 2002 as MD of Minervation Ltd an evidence-based healthcare consultancy based in Oxford.

After  2 very successful years of blogging as the Mental Elf, André decided to invite colleagues to join him as contributors to the site. It’s great to involve a wide range of people in this venture, to bring in a fresh perspective and their considerable knowledge and clinical experience.

How is the Mental Elf funded?

The National Elf Service website, which contains the Mental Elf and a number of other elves covering topics from dentistry to social care, was set up by Minervation Ltd. The Founders of Minervation (André Tomlin and Douglas Badenoch) are also Founders and Directors of the National Elf Service. The website is self-funded and receives no money from the pharmaceutical industry or other commercial organisations. We feel that it is important we remain independent from any commercial organisations who work in mental health.

In 2012, we received a small research and development grant from the UK Government to carry out the market research to get our website fully tested and launched.

Does the Mental Elf make money?

All of the National Elf Service blogs (including the Mental Elf) are free. That will always remain so. Contributors are not paid for their blogs, and we only work with people who have no conflict of interest.

However, it costs money to run the website. We generate revenue from Membership. Our members enjoy the added benefits of a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) system within the National Elf Service website. This is aimed at students and professionals who need to keep up to date with the latest research in a way that can be linked to their CPD. The CPD system has been built with significant investment from Minervation and is run as a business. We sell individual and institutional subscriptions to this website and our clients include universities, charities, the NHS and local authorities. An institutional subscription includes bulk access to our CPD membership area as well as consultancy support from our team. Find out more by reading our publicity leaflet.

We also generate revenue from consultancy services that we provide to the NHS, charities, universities, professional membership bodies and mental health networks. Our consultancy services include live reporting from mental health events (#BeyondTheRoom) and producing bespoke digital content (e.g. podcasts, videos).

Our plan is to build this business so we can grow the website and include other health topics in our list of elves.

Is the National Elf Service ever paid for content?

No. We do not accept commissioned articles, and we do not work with authors who have a conflict of interest with the paper in question.

Who edits the blogs?

We currently have 5 project coordinators working at The National Elf Service. Whilst they mainly commission and edit blogs for the Mental Elf, they can often be found working on a variety of different projects including podcasts, #BeyondTheRoom events and more. If you have a question for one of the team or would like to write a blog for us, you can read more about them and the topics they are responsible for below:

Syeda Akther

Syeda is a Trainee Clinical Psychologist at the University of Oxford. Prior to beginning clinical training, Syeda worked as a research assistant on various research projects including the NIHR Mental Health Policy Research Unit. Her research interests include ethnic inequalities, the mental health of Muslims, the experience of carers, as well as service user and carer involvement in research.

Syeda is responsible for our blogs on: Public mental health/community/ primary care, Genetics/ neuroscience/ biology, Inpatient/ crisis (MH nursing), Minority MH, Multimorbidity, Personality disorders, Psychosocial interventions.

Follow Syeda on Twitter @SyedaAkther2

View Syeda’s Mental Elf blogs here.

Dafni Katsampa

Dafni is a psychology graduate with an MSc in Clinical Mental Health Sciences from UCL. She is currently an ECR at MARCH Network (UCL) and working as a Research Assistant at the Middlesex University on a suicide prevention project commissioned by Samaritans and Network Rail. She is exploring bystander life-saving interventions when someone is at risk and/or feeling suicidal at public places. Her research interests include suicide prevention, social determinants and their impact on mental health, health inequalities and promotion of wellbeing through cultural engagement.

Dafni is responsible for our blogs on: Arts and cultural engagement, Bipolar, Dementia and Delirium, Depression, Exercise, physical activity and diet, Mentally ill professionals, Suicide and self-harm.

Follow Dafni on Twitter @DafniKatsampa

View Dafni’s Mental Elf blogs here.

Leanne Patrick

Leanne is a registered mental health nurse working in a community drug and alcohol service. She is also an MSc social research student, exploring the social factors influencing underdiagnosis of ASD in girls who compensate. Previously, Leanne has been a journalist and columnist writing about childhood development and mental health. Her research interests include substance dependence, mental health in childhood and adolescence, domestic violence and families.

Leanne is responsible for our blogs on: Substance use, dependence and addiction, Economics, Developmental disorders, Perinatal mental health and parenting, Child and adolescent mental health.

Follow Leanne on Twitter @LeanneHPatrick

View Leanne’s Mental Elf blogs here.

Katherine Saunders

Katherine is in the final year of her PhD at the Section of Women’s Mental Health at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, KCL. Her research focuses on domestic violence perpetration and the association with mental health. She holds a BSc in Experimental Psychology from the University of Bristol and an MSc from KCL in Forensic Mental Health.

Katherine is responsible for our blogs on: Diagnostic and transdiagnostic, Global mental health, Displaced populations, Psychosis and schizophrenia, Trauma, Violence and abuse, Forensics

Follow Katherine on Twitter @KSaundersKCL

View Katherine’s Mental Elf blogs here.

Laura Hemming

Laura is a PhD student at the University of Manchester where she is investigating how difficulties with identifying and describing emotions are related to suicide and violence amongst male prisoners. Prior to this Laura worked as a researcher at the McPin Foundation. Laura’s research areas of interest include forensic mental health, suicide prevention and qualitative research methods. Laura has always had a strong interest in patient and public involvement and engagement in research.

Laura is responsible for our blogs on: Anxiety, Digital Mental Health, Eating Disorders, Employment, Workplace, Housing, Welfare, Crime, Loneliness, Recovery/ Positive MH & wellbeing, Service user involvement, Coproduction, PPI.

Follow Laura on Twitter @LHemming123

View Laura’s Mental Elf blogs here.

Who writes for the Mental Elf?

We have an ever-expanding team of people who contribute to the site. The group includes senior clinicians and researchers, health and social care professionals, academics, service users, students, information scientists and carers.

We’re adding to our network of writers all the time, so find out more if you’re interested in getting involved yourself.

1. Clive Adams, Chair of Mental Health Services Research and Co-ordinating Editor of the Cochrane Schizophrenia Group at the University of Nottingham
2. Sally Adams, Lecturer in Health Psychology at the University of Bath
3. Syeda Akther, Research Assistant at the QMUL Unit for Social and Community Psychiatry
4. Lia Ali, Consultant Psychiatrist for Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
5. Eva Alisic, Psychologist and Research Fellow at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia
6. Ahmed Al-Shihabi, Medicine Student at University College London
7. Rachel Allan, Practice Leader for The Royal Mencap Society
8. Rob Allison, Lecturer at the Department of Health Sciences, University of York
9. Lucía Almazán Sánchez, Medical Student at King’s College London
10. Murtada Alsaif, Pharmacist
11. Ian Anderson, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Manchester
12. Steve Appleton, Managing Director, Contact Consulting
13. Golnar Aref-Adib, NIHR Academic Clinical Fellow at UCL and Camden & Islington NHS Foundation Trust
14. Louise Arseneault, ESRC Mental Health Leadership Fellow and Professor of Developmental Psychology at King’s College London, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience
15. Henry Aughterson, PhD student at UCL
16. Douglas Badenoch, Director of Minervation Ltd
17. John Baker, Chair of Mental Health Nursing at the University of Leeds
18. Joe Barnby, Research Assistant at University College London
19. Jack Barton, PhD student at University of Manchester
20. Andy Bell, Deputy Chief Executive at the Centre for Mental Health
21. Imogen Bell, Postdoctoral Research Fellow and Psychologist at Orygen and the Centre for Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne.
22. Jonny Benjamin, Mental Health Campaigner, Film Producer, Public Speaker, Writer and Vlogger
23. Laura Bennett, Research Assistant for the Learning Disability Mortality Review Programme (LeDeR) at University of Bristol
24. Clara Belessiotis, Core Trainee in Psychiatry at East London Foundation Trust
25. Francesca Bentivegna, LSA at City Education
26. Kathryn Berzins, Research Fellow in Mental Health at the School of Healthcare, University of Leeds
27. Victoria Betton, Director of mHabitat
28. Vishal Bhavsar, Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Training Fellow in Epidemiology, Institute of Psychiatry
29. Catherine Bird, Research Assistant at The Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London
30. Molly Bird, Research Associate and UCL Loneliness and Social Isolation Network member
31. Jo Billings, Consultant Clinical Psychologist & Associate Clinical Professor, UCL
32. Jonathan Bisson, Psychiatrist at Cardiff University
33. Melissa Black, Clinical psychologist and post-doctoral researcher at the University of Cambridge
34. Lisa Bortolotti, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Birmingham
35. Helen Bould, Wellcome Trust Doctoral Training Fellow at the Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford
36. Lucy Bowes, Associate Professor in Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford
37. Hannah Bowers, Research Fellow at Southampton University
38. Simon Bradstreet, Research Fellow at the University of Glasgow
39. Rachel Brand, Clinical Psychologist and Research Fellow at Phoenix Australia: Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health, The University of Melbourne
40. Josefien Breedvelt, Research Officer at the Mental Health Foundation
41. Gerome Breen, Psychiatric Geneticist at King’s College London
42. Simon Brett, Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner & MSci student at the University of Reading
43. Amy Broadbent, Research Assistant, Cambridge
44. Matthew Broome, Senior Clinical Research Fellow at the Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford
45. Mark Brown, Development Director of Social Spider CIC
46. Stefan Brugger, NIHR Academic Clinical Research Fellow at UCL
47. Martin Brunet, GP from the Binscombe Medical Centre
48. Kjetil Gundro Brurberg, Researcher in the Division of Primary Care and Clinical Procedures at the Norwegian Knowledge Center for Health Services in Public Health, Oslo, Norway
49. Jennifer Burgess, Academic Clinical Fellow in General Adult Psychiatry in Newcastle
50. Lisa Burscheidt, Assistant Librarian at North East London NHS Foundation Trust
51. Peter Byrne, Consultant Liaison Psychiatrist at the Royal London Hospital
52. Alastair Canaway, Research Fellow at the University of Warwick
53. Krysia Canvin, Independent Health Services Researcher
54. Victoria Carlisle, PhD Student at the Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group, University of Bristol
55. Sarah Carr, Associate Professor of Mental Health Research at Middlesex University, Independent Consultant at Sarah Carr and Associates Ltd
56. Laura Caven, Policy Manager at Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA)
57. Brant Cebulla, Development Director for the Vitamin D Council in California, USA
58. Emma Cernis, Research Assistant, Oxford
59. Iain Chalmers, Coordinator at James Lind Initiative
60. Sarah Chapman, Knowledge Broker at UK Cochrane Centre
61. Paul Christiansen, Lecturer at the University of Liverpool
62. Andrea Cipriani, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Oxford; Editor in Chief of Evidence-Based Mental Health
63. Natasha Clarke, PhD Student at the University of Liverpool
64. Alys Cole-King, Consultant Liaison Psychiatrist at the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, the Royal College of Psychiatrists Spokesperson on Suicide and Self harm, and the Clinical Director of Connecting with People
65. Elizabeth Collier, Lecturer in Mental Health at the University of Derby
66. Lorna Collins, Researcher and Member of the MARCH network
67. Jennifer Collom, Research Assistant at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, Kings College London
68. Dean Connolly, Student at University College London
69. Nicola Coop, Assistant Psychologist
70. Mick Cooper, Professor of Counselling at the School of Psychological Sciences and Health, University of Strathclyde, Scotland
71. Emma Corcoran, Research Assistant at UCL Psychiatry
72. Samuele Cortese, Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Southampton and Honorary Consultant Child Psychiatrist at Solent NHS Trust
73. Elana Covshoff, Programme Manager at SHRINE
74. Marie Crabbe, Research Assistant at Oxford Health Foundation NHS Trust
75. Jake Crawshaw, PhD candidate at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, King’s College London
76. Byron Creese, Research Psychologist at the University of Exeter
77. Ioana Cristea, Associate Professor at Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca and a Research Fellow at the University of Pisa, Italy
78. Ioana Crivatu, Research Assistant, Middlesex Univerity, London
79. Jazz Croft, PhD candidate at the Centre for Academic Mental Health, University of Bristol
80. Ian Cummins, Senior Lecturer in Social Work at the University of Salford
81. Emily Currell, MSc Student at University College London
82. Simon D’Alfonso, Lecturer in Digital Health, The University of Melbourne
83. David Daley, Professor of Psychological Intervention and Behaviour Change at the University of Nottingham
84. Tim Dalgleish, Programme leader at University of Cambridge
85. Sasha Danilina, PhD Student at University College London
86. Suzanne Dash, Graduate-Entry Medicine Student at the University of Oxford
87. Geoff Davies, Trainee Clinical Psychologist at the University of Surrey
88. Kelly Davies, Lecturer in Mental Health at the University of York
89. John M Davis, Professor of Psychiatry and Research Professor of Medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago
90. Jennifer de Bayer, Research Coordinator at the Centre for Statistics in Medicine, Oxford University
91. Derek de Beurs, Senior Mental Health Researcher at the Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research (NIVEL)
92. Caroline De Brun, Knowledge and Evidence Manager at Public Health England Knowledge and Library Services
93. Angharad de Cates, Psychiatry Registrar and Honorary Research Fellow at Warwick Medical School
94. Jill Domoney, Clinical Psychologist and Researcher at the Section of Women’s Mental Health, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London
95. Ailsa Donnelly, Lay Chair of the PRIMER group
96. Muna Dubad, PhD Student at the University of Warwick
97. Jay Duckworth, PhD Student at the University of Liverpool
98. Thalia Eley, Professor of Developmental Behavioural Genetics at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, Kings College London
99. Edzard Ernst, Emeritus Professor at Exeter University
100. Michelle Eskinazi, MSC Student at University College London & Core Psychiatry Trainee at Camden & Islington NHS Foundation Trust
101. Norah Essali, Medical student at the University of Kalamoon, Syria
102. Pete Etchells, Senior Lecturer in Biological Psychology at Bath Spa University
103. Katie Evans, Head of Research and Policy at Money and Mental Health
104. Alison Faulkner, Surviver Researcher and Trainer in Mental Health
105. Mina Fazel, Associate Professor in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the Oxford University Department of Psychiatry and Consultant in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
106. Matt Field, Professor of Psychology at the University of Liverpool
107. Caroline Fiennes, Director at Giving Evidence
108. Saoirse Finn, Network Co-ordinator at Arts Health Early Career Research Network
109. Katie Finning, PhD student at the School of Medicine and Health, University of Exeter
110. Terry Flemming, Senior Lecturer at the Victoria University of Wellington
111. Meg Fluharty, Research Assistant at the Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group, University of Bristol
112. Andrés Fonseca, Consultant Psychiatrist, CEO of Health eLiving Partnership, Honorary Lecturer at UCL
113. Tamsin Ford, Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Exeter
114. Alexander Foster, Research Worker in Global Mental Health at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London
115. Una Foye, Research Officer at the Mental Health Foundation
116. Suzi Gage, Lecturer in Psychology and Epidemiology at the University of Liverpool
117. Linda Gask, Emerita Professor of Primary Care Psychiatry at the University of Manchester
118. Lina Gega, Reader in Mental Health at the University of York and Hull York Medical School
119. Clarissa Giebel, Researcher and PhD student at the PSSRU, University of Manchester
120. Bethany Gill, Research Associate at Lancaster Associate
121. Patricia Gillen, Head of Research and Development for Nurses, Midwives and AHPs/ Lecturer at the Southern Health and Social Care Trust (SHSCT) and Ulster University
122. Maria Giorgalli, Student, MSc in Clinical Mental Health Sciences at University College London
123. Laura Godfrey-Isaacs, Artist, Midwife and Birth Activist
124. Guy Goodwin, Professor of Psychiatry at the University Department of Psychiatry, Oxford
125. Sophie Graham, Medical Student at Newcastle University
126. Amy Green, Academic Clinical Lecturer at the University of Bristol
127. Sarah Gregory, Doctoral candidate and study coordinator at the University of Edinburgh
128. Ellen Grimas, PhD Student at Imperial College
129. David Gunnell, MB, ChB, DSc, FMedSci Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Bristol
130. Peter Haddad, Senior Consultant in Psychiatry, Hamad Medical Corporation, Qatar; Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Qatar University, Qatar
131. Ian Hamilton, Associate Professor in addiction at University of York
132. Terry Hanley, Senior Lecturer in Counselling Psychology at University of Manchester
133. Ben Hannigan, Reader in Mental Health Nursing in the School of Healthcare Sciences at Cardiff University
134. Keir Harding, Occupational Therapist, Cynnwys (together), at the personality disorder service in Cardiff
135. Laurie Hare-Duke, Research Fellow at the Institute of Mental Health, University of Nottingham
136. Amanda Harris, Psychologist and Director of the Australian Child & Adolescent Trauma, Loss & Grief Network
137. Judith Harrison, Welsh Clinical Academic Training Fellow at Cardiff University
138. Camille Hart, Psychiatric Trainee Doctor at Queen’s University, Belfast
139. Suzan Hassan, PhD Student at UCL Primary Care and Population Health
140. Helge Hasselmann, Research Masters Student in Clinical and Cognitive Neurosciences at Maastricht University
141. Simon Hatcher, Full Professor of Psychiatry at The University of Ottawa
142. Joseph Hayes, Clinical Training Fellow at UCL Division of Psychiatry
143. Laura Hemming, PhD Student at the University of Manchester
144. Jill Hemmington, Senior Lecturer and Course Leader PG Cert (AMHP) at the School of Social Work, Care and Community, University of Central Lancashire
145. Paul Heron, Research Fellow at Closing the Gap Network, University of York
146. Sarah Hetrick, Associate Professor in Youth Mental Health at the University of Auckland
147. Jessamy Hibberd, Chartered Clinical Psychologist
148. Emily Hielscher, PhD Candidate at University of Queensland
149. Kerrie-Anne Ho, PhD Candidate at the University of New South Wales, Australia
150. Chris Hollis, Professor of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Nottingham and Consultant in Developmental Neuropsychiatry with Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust
151. Mark Horowitz, Training Psychiatrist from Australia who is completing a PhD at King’s College London
152. Maxine Howard, PhD student at University College London
153. Dochka Hristova, Project Coordinator for the National Elf Service
154. Samei Huda, Consultant Psychiatrist at Pennine Care, Manchester
155. Liz Hughes, Professor of Mental Health at University of Huddersfield and South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
156. Neil Humphrey, Professor of Psychology of Education and Head of the Manchester Institute of Education at the University of Manchester
157. Jane Iles, Clinical Psychologist working in CAMHS and Research Associate at Imperial College London
158. Udita Iyengar, Project Manager in the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
159. Pamela Jacobsen, Clinical Psychologist and NIHR Research Fellow at King’s College London
160. Benjamin Janaway, Psychiatry trainee and Science communicator
161. Alex Jarram, PhD student at University College London
162. Sameer Jauhar, Research Fellow and Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist at the Institute of Psychiatry
163. Sam Jee, Research Associate at the University of Manchester
164. Sonia Johnson, Professor of Social and Community Psychiatry at UCL, Director of the NIHR Mental Health Policy Research Unit
165. Susie Johnson, Recent Graduate from Bristol University
166. Mandy Johnstone, Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Fellow and Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist, University of Edinburgh
167. Andrew Jones, Post-doctoral researcher at the University of Liverpool
168. Ian Jones, Professor of Perinatal Psychiatry at Cardiff University, Director of the Welsh National Centre for Mental Health
169. Jonathan Jones, PhD Psychology student at the University of Exeter
170. Mona Jones, Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner, AnDY Research clinic, University of Reading
171. Dan Joyce, Clinical Lecturer at Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London, Junior Doctor in general adult psychiatry
172. Joe Judge, Clinical Psychologist in the Hamilton Psychological Therapies Team, Lanarkshire, Scotland
173. Shubhangi Karmakar, Medical and MSc student at Trinity College Dublin
174. Muzaffer Kaser, Psychiatrist and Clinical Lecturer at the Department of Psychiatry, Cambridge University
175. Dafni Katsampa, Research Assistant at Middlesex University London
176. Anjuli Kaul, Administrator at the Violence and Abuse Mental Health Network
177. Eleanor Kennedy, PhD Student at Bristol Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group, University of Bristol
178. Patrick Kennedy-Williams, BPS Chartered and HCPC-registered Clinical Psychologist, Co-director of Psychology Oxford
179. Jack Kerwin, Medical student
180. Roxanne Keynejad, Clinical Research Training Fellow in the Section of Women’s Mental Health at King’s College London
181. Nagina Khan, MRC Research Training Fellow at the National Primary Care Research and Development Centre, University of Manchester
182. Olivia Kirtley, Research Assistant at the University of Glasgow
183. Pooky Knightsmith, Speaker, Lecturer, Trainer, Author and Vice Chair of the Children and Young People’s Mental Health Coalition
184. Dee Knipe, Vice Chancellor’s Elizabeth Blackwell Research Fellow, University of Bristol
185. Sarah Knowles, Research Fellow at the  NIHR School for Primary Care Research
186. Will Koehler, Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania and Owner of Journey to a Trauma Informed Life, LLC.
187. Matthew Kube-Clare, Trainee Psychiatrist at the Oxleas NHS trust.
188. Stanley Kutcher, Sun Life Financial Chair in Adolescent Mental Health and the Director WHO Collaborating Care in Mental Health Policy and Training at Dalhousie University and IWK Health Centre in Canada
189. Emmeline Lagunes Cordoba, Psychiatrist and psychotherapist
190. Jennifer Laidlaw, PGY-5 Resident in Psychiatry at the University of Toronto
191. Joseph Lam, MSc Graduate in Clinical Mental Health Science UCL
192. Danielle Lamb, Programme Manager of the AD-CARE study at the UCL Division of Psychiatry
193. Nicky Lambert, Director of Teaching and Learning Mental Health, Social Work and Integrative Medicine at Middlesex University
194. Alex Langford, Psychiatrist in Oxford
195. Jennifer Lau, University Lecturer at the University of Oxford, Director of the Researching Emotional Disorders and Development (REDD) lab
196. Sharon Lawn, Professor, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Australia
197. Keith Laws, Professor of Cognitive Neuropsychology at the University of Hertfordshire
198. Kirsten Lawson, Consultant Liaison Psychiatrist and Clinical Lead for Liaison Psychiatry Services at Kent & Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership NHS Trust
199. Caroline Leah, Senior Lecturer and Social Worker based at Manchester Metropolitan University
200. William Lee, Clinical Associate Professor (Reader) in Psychiatry at Plymouth University
201. Simon Leigh, Health Economist at Lifecode® Solutions and Nexus Clinical Analytics, Research Fellow at the University of Liverpool
202. Douglas Levinson, Director of the Stanford University Program on the Genetics of Brain Function in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
203. Gemma Lewis, University College London
204. Michelle Lim, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology at Swinburne University of Technology, and Head of the Social Health and Wellbeing Laboratory
205. Bryn Lloyd-Evans, Senior Lecturer in the UCL Division of Psychiatry
206. Maria Loades, Senior Lecturer/Clinical Tutor, Doctorate in Clinical Psychology programme at the University of Bath
207. Karina Lovell, Director of Research and Professor of Mental Health at the University of Manchester
208. Colleen Loo, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of New South Wales, Australia
209. Raluca Lucacel, PhD Student, Cluj Napoca, Romania
210. Maartje Luijten, Assistant Professor at the Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands
211. James MacCabe, Reader in the Epidemiology of Psychosis at the Institute of Psychiatry Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London
212. Lucy Maddox, NHS Clinical Psychologist, Lecturer and BSA Media Fellow
213. Sarah Man, Staff Nurse at the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Unit
214. Sammy Man, Clinical Psychologist
215. Farhana Mann, Wellcome Trust Research Training Fellow at University College London and Specialist Registrar (ST6) in General Adult Psychiatry in North London
216. Warren Mansell, Reader in Clinical Psychology at the University of Manchester
217. Elena Marcus, Research Assistant at the National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health and University College London
218. Joanna Martin, PhD Student at Cardiff University
219. Steven Marwaha, Reader at Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick
220. Lisa Marzano, Associate Professor in Psychology at Middlesex University
221. Timothy Matthews, Postdoctoral Researcher at King’s College London
222. Olivia Maynard, Research Associate at the Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group at the University of Bristol
223. Edel Mc Glanaghy, Clinical Psychologist with NHS Forth Valley and a Research Fellow at Edinburgh Napier University
224. Heather McClelland, Research Assistant and PhD Student at University of Glasgow
225. Sarah McDonald, Clinical Psychologist
226. Iain McDougall, Specialist trainee in General Adult Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Belfast
227. Carla McEnery, Provisional Psychologist and PhD candidate at the Brain and Psychological Sciences Research Centre, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne
228. Paula McFadden, Senior Lecturer in Social Work at Ulster University
229. John McGowan, Director and Academic Director of the Clinical Psychology Training Scheme at the Salomons Centre for Applied Psychology, Kent
230. Andrew McIntosh, Professor of Biological Psychiatry in the University of Edinburgh Division of Psychiatry
231. Kwame McKenzie, CEO of Wellesley Institute
232. Alison McKinlay, Psychologist and Post-doctoral researcher at the Institute of Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience.
233. Kate McLaughlin, Clinical Psychologist and Assistant Professor at the Department of Psychology at the University of Washington, USA
234. Sally McManus, Research Director at the National Centre for Social Research
235. Peter McMurray, Psychiatry Core Trainee working in the Southern Trust in Northern Ireland
236. Chris Miller, Research Assistant at the Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
237. Kathryn Mitchell, Core Psychiatry Trainee working in the Belfast Trust, Northern Ireland
238. Emma Molyneaux – Postdoctoral Researcher in the Section of Women’s Mental Health at King’s College London and works for the Mental Health Policy Research Unit
239. Mark Monaghan, Lecturer in Criminology and Social Policy at the University of Loughborough
240. Stephen Moore, Inpatient Psychiatrist in the Tyrone and Fermanagh Hospital, Northern Ireland
241. Paul Morrison, Psychiatrist and Researcher at the Institute of Psychiatry, KCL
242. Nuala Morse, Lecturer in Museum Studies at the University of Leicester
243. Michelle Moulds, Professor and PLuS Alliance Fellow, School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Australia
244. Claire Mokrysz, PhD Student at University College London
245. John Moriarty, Research Fellow at University of Belfast
246. Marcus Munafò, Professor of Biological Psychology at the University of Bristol
247. Nikki Nabavi, Medical Student at the University of Manchester
248. Monisha Nahar, MSc Student at UCL
249. Akshay Nair, Wolfson Clinical Research Fellow at University College London
250. Josephine Neale, Trainee Psychiatrist in North London
251. Natalie Nelissen, Research Fellow at mHabitat
252. Rosalyn Nelson, Assistant Psychologist at North Wilts Memory Service, Avon & Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust
253. Jill Newby, Senior Lecturer, MRFF/NHMRC Career Development Fellow and Research Director of the Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety and Depression at St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney
254. Nicola Newhouse, Researcher at Health Experiences Research Group, University of Oxford
255. Claire Niedzwiedz, Postdoctoral Researcher at the Centre for Research on Environment, Society and Health at the University of Edinburgh
256. Peter Norton, Professor of Clinical Psychology at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia, and Director of the Monash FEAR Clinic
257. Aileen O’Brien, Reader in Psychiatry and Education & Dean for Students at St George’s University of London
258. Elly O’Brien, Information Scientist, London
259. Siobhan O’Neill, Professor of Mental Health Sciences at Ulster University
260. Andrew O’Shaughnessy, Consultant in Public Health in Bradford & Airedale and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Leeds
261. Chris O’Sullivan, Mental Health Foundation
262. Juliana Onwumere, Senior Lecturer & Consultant Clinical Psychologist, King’s College, London, South London & Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
263. Sami Ouanes, Clinical Fellow in Advanced General Adult Psychiatry, Hamad Medical Corporation, Qatar
264. Michael Ostacher, Associate Professor at the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine
265. Dennis Ougrin, Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and Clinical Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience
266. Gozde Ozakinci, Health Psychologist and Lecturer in health psychology at the University of St Andrews
267. Geoff Page, Research Fellow at the University of York
268. Laurence Palfreyman, Assistant Psychologist in South London
269. Harry Palmer, Programme Coordinator, Mental Health Research Programme, Veterans and their Families (UK), Centre for Mental Health
270. Carmine Pariante, Professor of Biological Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, Consultant Perinatal Psychiatrist at the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust
271. Georgie Parker, Mental Health Recovery Worker, Rethink Mental Illness
272. Jennie Parker, Senior Researcher at the McPin Foundation
273. Emily Peckham, Closing the Gap Network+ Coordinator at York University
274. Christopher Pell, In-patient General Adult Psychiatrist at the Susan Carnegie Centre in Angus, Scotland for NHS Tayside
275. Elvira Perez Vallejos, Associate Professor Digital Tech for Mental Health at the University of Nottingham
276. Serap Pinar, Biomedical and Molecular Science Research (M.Sc) from King’s College London
277. Vanessa Pinfold, Co-Founder & Research Director at the McPin Foundation
278. Alexandra Pitman, Senior Clinical Lecturer in the UCL Division of Psychiatry and an Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist at Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust
279. Rudiger Pittrof, Consultant in Sexual and Reproductive Health at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust
280. Belinda Platt, Post-Doc at the LMU University Clinic for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
281. Rob Poole, Professor of Social Psychiatry at Bangor University
282. Inês Pote, Research Officer for the Early Intervention Foundation
283. Lucinda Powell, Psychology teacher
284. Amy Price, Trustee of the ThinkWell charity where she leads the PLOT-IT (Public Led Online Trials-Infrastructure and Tools) project
285. Paul Ramchandani, LEGO Professor of Play in Education at the University of Cambridge
286. Matt Ravenhall, Final year Biology student at the University of York
287. Susan Rasmussen, Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychological Sciences and Health at the University of Strathclyde
288. Stefan Rennick-Egglestone, Digital Research Specialist at theUniversity of Nottingham
289. Laoise Renwick, Lecturer at the University of Manchester
290. Shirley Reynolds, Director of the Charlie Waller Institute and Professor of Evidence Based Psychological Therapies at the University of Reading
291. Thomas Richardson, Principal Clinical Psychologist at Solent NHS Trust
292. Jodi Rintelman, Pharmacist and medical writer
293. Tessa Roberts, global mental health researcher
294. Abi Rose, Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Liverpool
295. Diana Rose, Professor of User-Led Research and Head of Section and Co-director Service User Research Enterprise (SURE) at King’s College London
296. Rachel Rowan-Olive, Mental Health Service User/Survivor, Illustrator, and graduate student at Birkbeck, University of London
297. Sarah Rowe, Lecturer on the MSc Clinical Mental Health Sciences and MSc Mental Health Sciences Research, UCL Division of Psychiatry
298. Tobias Rowland, Academic Clinical Fellow, University of Warwick
299. Alex Ruck Keene, Barrister specialising in mental capacity and mental health law and Wellcome Research Fellow at King’s College London
300. Kirsten Russell, PhD student at Strathclyde University
301. Katharine Sacks-Jones, Director of Agenda
302. Emma Saddleton, Research Worker and part-time MSc student at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, London
303. Tatiana Salisbury, Lecturer in Global Mental Health at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London
304. Paul Salkovskis, Director of the Oxford Institute of Clinical Psychology Training and Oxford Centre for Cognitive Therapy
305. Christopher Sampson, Health Economist at the University of Nottingham
306. João Santos, Research Associate and Data Manager at the Manchester Institute of Education, University of Manchester
307. Leela Sathyaputri, Undergraduate Research Assistant at the University of Iowa
308. Martyna Sawicka, Data Collection Coordinator, Arizona Twin Project at Arizona State University
309. Heike Schroder, Lecturer in Human Resource Management at Queen’s University Management School
310. Ava Schulz, Postdoctoral Researcher on the OPTIMAX project
311. Susanne Schweizer, Sir Henry Wellcome Fellow in the Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Group, UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscienc
312. Hannah Rachel Scott, PhD Student at the University College London
313. Lucas Shelemy, PhD Researcher at the University of Reading
314. Andrew Shepherd, Doctoral research Fellow at the University of Manchester and Higher Trainee in Forensic Psychiatry
315. Hilary Shepherd, MSc Dementia student at University College London
316. Luke Sheridan-Rains, Research associate in the NIHR Mental Health Policy Research Unit, UCL Division of Psychiatry
317. Natalie Shoham, Clinical Training Fellow at UCL
318. Lucy Simons, Research Fellow at NIHR MindTech Healthcare Technology Cooperative, Institute of Mental Health, University of Nottingham
319. Megan Skelton, PhD student in the Emotional Development Intervention and Treatment Lab (EDIT Lab) at King’s College London
320. Jude Smit, PhD student and Psychotherapist
321. Mark Smith, IAPT Clinician working for Steps2Change and independent Psychotherapist Trainer
322. Francesca Solmi, Research Associate, Division of Psychiatry, University College London
323. Andrew Sommerlad, PhD Fellow at University College London
324. Sophie Stammers, Research Fellow on Project PERFECT at the University of Birmingham
325. Emily Stapley, Research Fellow in the Evidence Based Practice Unit at the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families and UCL
326. Eloise Stark, PhD student at the University of Oxford
327. Thomas Steare, Research Assistant at University College London
328. Sarah Steeg, Presidential Fellow, University of Manchester
329. David Steele, Junior Doctor with an interest in psychology, psychiatry and public health
330. Kevin Stone, Associate Head of Department for Law at UWE, Bristol
331. Becci Strawbridge, Mental Health Research at the Institute if Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London
332. Caroline Struthers, Education and Training Manager for the EQUATOR Network
333. Shuichi Suetani, Psychiatrist at the Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research & Queensland Brain Institute
334. Harry Sumnall, Professor in Substance Use at the Public Health Institute, Liverpool John Moores University
335. Irene Sutcliffe, Lived experience expert
336. Rebecca Syed, Researcher at King’s College London
337. Edward Sykes, Senior Press Manager and Head of Mental Health & Neuroscience, Science Media Centre
338. Danny Taggart, Academic Director for the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, University of Essex
339. Katherine Tallent, Mental Health Recovery Worker, Rethink Mental Illness
340. Marcus Tan, Academic Clinical Fellow at Plymouth University School of Medicine
341. Andrew Thompson, Clinical Health Psychologist at the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Health & Social Care NHS Foundation Trust
342. Rupert Thurston, Junior Doctor working in General Adult Psychiatry in the West Midlands
343. Caroline Tomes, Public Health Specialty Registrar currently working in Cambridge
344. André Tomlin, Founder and Managing Director of Minervation Ltd and the National Elf Service Ltd
345. Anneka Tomlinson, Clinician and Senior Postdoctoral Researcher at the Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford
346. John Torous, Director of the Digital Psychiatry Division at the Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
347. Solomon Towuru, Lecturer in Mental Health altho eh University of Derby
348. Derek Tracy, Consultant Psychiatrist and Associate Clinical Director for crisis, inpatient, and rehabilitation services at Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust
349. David Trickey, Consultant clinical psychologist at the Specialist Trauma and Maltreatment Service at the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families
350. Stella Tsoli, PhD student at the Centre for Longitudinal Studies, UCL.
351. Remco Tuijt, PhD student at UCL
352. David Turgoose, Clinical Psychologist in the Attachment and Trauma Team at Great Ormond Street Hospital
353. Alison Turner, Head of the Evidence Analysis team within the Strategy Unit at NHS Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit
354. Alan Underwoord, Specialist Clinical Psychologist
355. Raphael Underwood, PhD candidate at the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London
356. Noortje Uphoff, Research Fellow,  Cochrane Common Mental Disorder, University of York
357. Rachel Upthegrove, Senior Clinical Lecturer in Psychiatry at the University of Birmingham
358. Anne-Laura van Harmelen, Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge
359. Kathryn Walsh, Research Associate at the University of Birmingham
360. Joanne Wallace, Graduate Entry Medical Student at The University of Warwick
361. Michael Walton, PhD student at Manchester Metropolitan University
362. Jingyi Wang, Research Associate at UCL
363. Fiona Warner-Gale, Joint Director of Associate Development Solutions Ltd
364. Andrew Watson, Clinical Research Fellow in Psychiatry at the University of Edinburgh
365. Sarah Watts, Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Accredited Cognitive Behavioural Therapist and Clinical Lead with the Midlands Partnership Foundation Trust South Staffordshire IAPT teams
366. Jasmin Wertz, PhD Student at Kings College London
367. Simon Wessely, Chair of Psychological Medicine at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neurosciences (IoPPN), King’s College London
368. Karen Wetherall, Researcher at the Suicidal Behaviour Research Lab, University of Glasgow
369. Danny Whiting, Forensic Psychiatrist and NIHR Doctoral Research Fellow with the Forensic Psychiatry Research Group at the University of Oxford
370. Alice Wickersham, PhD student at the NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre
371. Michael Wigelsworth, Senior Lecturer at the Manchester Institute of Education, University of Manchester
372. Lucy Willetts, Chartered Clinical Psychologist and Accredited CBT Therapist
373. Sarsha Wilson, Research Assistant at the NIHR Oxford Cognitive Health Clinical Research Facility
374. Emma Wincup, Senior Lecturer in Criminology and Criminal Justice, School of Law at the University of Leeds
375. Katrina Witt, Research Fellow with the Centre for Suicide Research at the University of Oxford
376. Stephen Wood, Professor of Adolescent Brain Development and Mental Health at the University of Birmingham
377. Emma Yapp, Research Assistant in the Section of Women’s Mental Health in the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience at King’s College London
378. Vanessa Yim, Research assistant at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience
379. Tiago Zortea, Post-doctoral researcher in the Suicidal Behaviour Research Lab, University of Glasgow
380. Fabio Zucchelli, Sport and Exercise Psychology MSc student

Groups who have blogged

In addition to the individuals who blog for us, we sometimes publish blogs written by groups of people. These are often written as part of a training session or introduction to blogging; sometimes by students, sometimes by health professionals or academics. Here are some of the groups who have written Mental Elf blogs:

1. CAMSTRAND Conference delegates
2. Centre for Affective Disorders, King’s College London
3. Child and Adolescent Mental Health MSc, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health
4. Clinical Mental Health Sciences MSc, University College London
5. EQUATOR Publication School
6. Mental Health Studies MSc, King’s College London
7. NPNR Conference delegates
8. PenCLAHRC: NIHR Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care (CLAHRC) South West Peninsula
9. Psychology and Neuroscience of Mental Health MSc/PGDip/PGCert, King’s College London
10. University of Edinburgh Division of Psychiatry
11. University of Glasgow, Institute of Health and Wellbeing MSc Courses

Contact us if you’d like André Tomlin to teach blogging and social media in your institution.

Who decides what evidence is included on the website?

We scour over 400 databases, journals, websites and other feeds to bring you the best available mental health evidence.  Items are selected using an evidence-based inclusion criteria to ensure they are relevant to UK practice and based on high quality research, policy and guidance.

The selection process has no input from any external bodies, publishers, sponsors or commercial organisations.

We critically appraise the material we find using the CASP critical appraisal checklists.

Press coverage

• Profile: André Tomlin. BJPsych Bulletin, April 2018.
• André Tomlin: Mental Elf Guru. The Lancet Psychiatry, January 2016.
• Keeping up to date with reliable mental health research: the Minervation white paper. Douglas Badenoch and André Tomlin, 19th May 2015.
• Keeping up to date with mental health research. André Tomlin, The Guardian, 15th Apr 2013.
• Treating mental illness in the digital age. Pete Etchells, Discover Magazine, 13 Feb 2013.
• The Mental Elf. Royal College of Psychiatrists useful resources, eNewsletter, Sep 2012.

Are there more elves for different health topics?

We cover a number of topics on our National Elf Service. Check out these other elves:

• The Dental Elf
• The Education Elf
• The Learning Disabilities Elf
• The Social Care Elf

Contact us if you’d like to discuss collaborating on an elf in your field of interest.