Welcome to SPIRE, St Patrick’s Institutional Repository.
SPIRE is a digital space for research, academic and organisational information generated by staff across our services.
Established by Jonathan Swift in 1746, St Patrick’s Mental Health Services (SPMHS) is Ireland’s largest, independent, not-for-profit mental health service. In conjunction with our newly establish Academic Institute, SPIRE has been designed to store, catalogue, index, preserve, and share our academic outputs and aims to make published and unpublished work of our staff as widely available as possible. It includes the full text of journal articles, conference presentations, books and book chapters, technical reports, working papers, reviews and other scholarly contributions. Where material has already been published by external sources, it is made available subject to the open-access policies of the original publishers.
SPIRE aims to support and increase the impact of mental health research and ensure the voices of people who experience mental health difficulties, who participate in research, are heard and listened to. It is managed by the Academic Institute here in SPMHS.
You can learn more about our Academic Institute and our research activity here.
Recent Submissions
Item Use and characterization of personal psychotherapy by psychiatrists: Findings from a questionnaire survey in a sample of consultant and trainee psychiatrists in Ireland.(British Journal of Psychotherapy., 2026-01-11)Existing research suggests that personal therapy positively contributes to the continued personal well-being and ongoing professional development of mental health professionals, including psychiatrists. The aim of this research is to examine the use and characterization of personal therapy by consultant and trainee psychiatrists based in Ireland. This included an examination of participants who reported delivering psychotherapeutic interventions and their confidence in these skills. An anonymous survey was designed based on two existing questionnaires used in previous studies. Various recruitment strategies were employed to maximize response. A total of 139 psychiatrists responded to the survey; 44.6% reported having engaged in personal therapy at some point in their lives. Most respondents described their psychotherapy as short-term, supportive and once weekly. Burnout was listed among the top reasons for seeking therapy. By providing new insights into the status of psychotherapy within contemporary psychiatric practice, this study could thus be of interest to psychiatric educators and curriculum developers. For people who present to psychiatric services, psychotherapy still has a critical role in the treatment of mental distress. Psychiatrists therefore need sufficient exposure to and experience of the differing psychotherapy modalities to confidently treat or appropriately refer their patients. Concerningly, only a minority of the participants in this research had confidence in their psychotherapeutic technique, and many indicated only seeking personal psychotherapy when they had reached a crisis of burnout.Item Association Between Pulse Width and Clinical Response to Electroconvulsive Therapy(2026-01-06)Background The default pulse width setting on a commonly used electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) device, 0.5 milliseconds (ms), is untested against the proven effectiveness of conventional 1.0‒1.5 ms brief pulse widths. Methods We examined the association between pulse width and clinical response using registry data from 87 centres in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland in patients (N = 1956) receiving consecutive acute courses of ECT ending during 2023 for any clinical indication. The outcome was clinical response, defined as an end-of-treatment Clinical Global Impression‒Improvement score of 1 or 2. Results Mean age was 61.6 years (SD, 16.3), 66.3% were female, 84.2% were treated for depressive episode, and 86.5% received bilateral ECT. In a multivariable logistic regression analysis of all diagnostic categories, 0.5 ms (adjusted odds ratio 0.64; 95% CI, 0.50‒0.82; p < .001) and 0.25‒0.3 ms (adjusted odds ratio 0.56; 95% CI, 0.38‒0.82; p = .003) pulse widths were associated with significantly lower odds of response compared to 1.0 ms. Predicted probabilities of response were 73.4% (95% CI, 69.4%–77.3%) for 1.0 ms, 64.1% (95% CI, 61.4%–66.8%) for 0.5 ms, and 61.0% (95% CI, 53.8%–68.3%) for 0.25–0.3 ms. A subgroup analysis of unipolar or bipolar depressive episodes likewise showed significantly reduced odds of response with both 0.5 ms and 0.25‒0.3 ms. Conclusion This study demonstrated a previously unreported association between 0.5 ms pulse width and reduced ECT response. Unless cognitive sparing is paramount in an individual case, 1.0 ms ECT should be used as standard.Item Implementing virtual reality into a mental health service: an example from Ireland.(MAG, 2026-01)Implementing technological innovations into practice can often be a challenge. In this article, Shane Kirwan and colleagues describe the successful implementation of a virtual reality exposure therapy intervention in a mental health setting, explaining key steps, such as needs assessment, stakeholder engagement and ensuring the appropriate standards.Item Service User Views of Interpersonal Connections in a Videoconferencing Group Therapy Programme for Overcontrol.(Springer Nature, 2025-12-02)Group Radical Openness is a structured group therapy for individuals who struggle with costly and harmful overcontrol. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the group transitioned to videoconferencing format. Interpersonal connection is a core element of Group Radical Openness, and it was unclear if this would be negatively affected by this transition. This online survey study investigated service users’ experiences of interpersonal connection during videoconference delivered Group Radical Openness (videoconferencing Group Radical Openness). Upon completion of videoconferencing Group Radical Openness, 33 of 52 group members (63% response rate) from six groups completed an anonymous online survey consisting of open-ended questions. Data were subjected to conventional content analysis. 68.8% of survey respondents reported that their interpersonal connections were not hindered in videoconferencing Group Radical Openness, while 28.2% respondents reported the opposite (with the remaining 3% (n = 1) of responses uncategorisable). Respondents who reported that connection was hindered stated that more time was needed to build connections, and they felt that reduced opportunities for in-person interactions and ‘small talk’ impeded connection. Various connection-building recommendations were provided, such as using icebreakers and breakout rooms, promoting good online communication etiquette, and reducing technological disruptions. Just over two thirds of survey respondents reported positive experiences of interpersonal connection while attending videoconferencing Group Radical Openness. Although the substantial nonresponse rate limits the representativeness of these findings to some extent, the results support the videoconferencing delivery option for Group Radical Openness and similar group therapy programmes. For most service users who choose the videoconferencing format, interpersonal connection is likely to be maintained, with the added advantages of remote delivery (e.g., convenience) supporting overall engagement.Item An exploration of the experience of co-supervision practice education placements from the practice educator perspective.(Emerald Insight, 2025-11-20)Purpose The increasing demand for practice education placements in Ireland, driven by the growing need for allied health professionals, presents significant challenges. Over the past twenty years, the co-supervision model, which divides the supervision of a single student among two educators, has become more prevalent. This is largely due to its suitability for part-time therapists who wish to facilitate practice education placements. Despite its increasing use, the model has received less attention in occupational therapy than the one-to-one model, the two-to-one and the collaborative model. This paper aims to describe occupational therapy practice educators experiences of facilitating the co-supervision model of practice education. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative descriptive approach, semi-structured interviews were completed with nine occupational therapists to explore their experiences of using the co-supervision model. Data were analysed using Braun and Clarke’s six-phase reflexive thematic analysis. Rigour and trustworthiness were achieved through an audit trail, prolonged engagement with the data and ongoing team reflection on theme development. Findings Reflexive thematic analysis yielded five themes: (i) broad student learning opportunities in the co-supervision model, (ii) communication within collaborative relationships, (iii) co-supervision facilitates participation in the Practice Educator role, (iv) planning and self-preparation are essential and (v) the co-supervision model demands student self-management skills. Originality/value Providing contemporary nuanced evidence on practice educators’ perspectives of the co-supervision model in occupational therapy placements in an Irish context is essential in highlighting its potential as a promising alternative to other models in facilitating quality student placements.
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