DR ZOË GILDER

CONSULTANT CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRIST
NORTH EAST CHILD PSYCHIATRY LTD

WHAT IS A CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRIST?

A Psychiatrist is a medically-qualified doctor who has specialist training in psychiatry. A Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist has specific training in working with children, young people and their families, and expertise in thinking about mental and physical health in under-18s and providing the appropriate assessment and treatment. A Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist is often involved in assessing difficulties, providing a diagnosis (where appropriate), and prescribing medication and, sometimes, providing talking therapy. To see patients, Consultant Psychiatrists must be registered with both the General Medical Council (GMC) and the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

HOW I WORK WITH SELECT PSYCHOLOGY

I work closely with Select Psychology to ensure all the interventions required by a child or young person to support their mental health are available to them. This may mean recommending other professionals from Select Psychology to become involved in the care of a patient I am working with; alternatively, it may mean a member of Select Psychology recommends me. Some examples of when this might happen are:

• A young person with depression has been seeing one of Select Psychology’s psychologists, and they feel that an assessment for anti-depressant medication is also needed to help the young person’s recovery.
• A young person under my care for Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is already receiving medication, but I feel that Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) would be helpful too.
• A child requires a full assessment for possible autism. This should be carried out by more than one professional in collaboration with families/carers and schools, including psychiatry and psychology.

What is key is that I regularly communicate with Select Psychology to make sure we offer the best, most appropriate and comprehensive care for children and young people.

MY PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND AND EXPERIENCE

After qualifying as a Consultant in 2010, I worked as a full-time NHS Consultant in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in South Tyneside for three years. I then moved to an NHS post in Hartlepool, where I worked full-time for almost eight years before deciding to combine NHS and private practice.

I have experience working with under-18s with a range of mental health problems, including autism, ADHD, depression, bipolar disorder, generalised anxiety, OCD, Eating Disorders, Tics and Tourette’s, psychosis, self-harm behaviours, sleep difficulties and emerging personality difficulties. Many young people have other stressors and adverse life events that impact their mental health and I am well-used to adapting interventions to reflect those. They include early life trauma, abuse, being within the looked after children (LAC) system and learning difficulties.

Whilst working clinically, I have also held formal roles in medical education and medical management and being involved in service development and improvement.

I founded North East Child Psychiatry Ltd in autumn 2020 with a vision to provide high-quality psychiatric services to under 18s and their parents/carers within the North Tyneside area (and beyond). I aim to support children and young people with their mental health needs in a rapid, responsive way, fully catering to their individual needs and wants. I work closely and in partnership with other involved agencies such as schools and child health services (with appropriate consent from the young person/guardian). I also provide consultancy and supervision to other agencies working with children and young people, and I offer bespoke teaching and training packages within my field of expertise.

TRAINING AND QUALIFICATIONS

I graduated as a medical doctor from the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne Medical School in 2000 and entered general medical training as a junior doctor. I chose to specialise in psychiatry in 2003 and completed three years of training and completed my Royal College of Psychiatrists’ membership exams and entered the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry higher training scheme in 2006. After a further three years, I was awarded a ‘Certificate of Completion of Training’ (CCT) in 2010 and entered the GMC Specialist Register.

Alongside my clinical training and expertise, I undertook specialist training in clinical teaching, I was awarded a Postgraduate Certificate in Clinical Education (PGCCE) and have since been able to use these skills when delivering teaching and training to a wide range of professionals, both within the NHS and outside it. I have been involved in training junior doctors, consultant peer colleagues, General Practitioners, paediatricians, nurses, psychologists, social workers, teachers, health visitors, youth workers and other therapy staff.

Qualifications:

• MB BS (Merit), University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 2000
• MRCP 2006
• CCT – Child and Adolescent Psychiatry – 2010
• PGCCE, University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 2011

Accreditation to professional bodies:

• Full registration with the General Medical Council (GMC), reference number 4720119
• Member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists (MRCP), college membership number 811489
• Member of the Association of Child and Adolescent Mental Health (ACAMH)

AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST

Clinical Work:

• All child and adolescent psychiatric conditions

Associated areas:

• Transitions (supporting young people moving from under-18 services into adult services to ensure a smooth handover)
• Collaborative care planning (making sure the child/young person is at the heart of understanding and agreeing the best interventions to promote their recovery or support their difficulties, albeit with discussion with parents/carers for younger children)
• Patient feedback (collecting feedback directly from children and young people to understand what they think about the quality of service being provided to them and what improvements they think need to be made)
• Development of digital technologies to improve access to psychiatry