Rachel Whyte
Research Assistant in Mental Health
My profile
Biography
I am an early career researcher in the Mental Health Team at Manchester Metropolitan University. My academic background includes a BSc Psychology (The University of Birmingham) and a MSc Foundations in Clinical Psychology (The University of Southampton) where my dissertation received the Dean’s List Award for outstanding acheivement.Uniquely, my role as a Research Assistant, is to work across multiple NIHR funded projects, all of which aim to reduce violence in hospital and community settings using co-produced approaches.
I critically engage in a range of different approaches to support evidence-based research, ultimately seeking to improve the quality of life for individuals and families who experience mental health issues. I contribute to interdisciplinary research focusing on identifying appropriate and acceptable interventions, undertaking mixed methods and participatory research to produce high-quality materials for publication and dissemination to a wide range of audiences.
As an emerging independent researcher, I am committed to pursuing my interest in abuse, mental health and trauma research.
MEMBERSHIP OF PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
• British Psychological Society
• Honorary Research Assistant at Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust • Member of the NHS, Psychological Professions Network (NWPNN) • Member of Restraint Reduction Network (RRN) • Member of the Violence Abuse & Mental Health Network (VAMHN)
• Member of Fostering & Strengthening Approaches to Reducing Coercion in European Mental Health Services (FOSTREN.EU)
Projects
I currently work across the following projects:
•IMPROVE-ACT: Improving the Experiences of African Caribbean Men detained under the Mental Health Act: A Co-Produced Intervention Using the Silences Framework
•LEARN: A Realist Review of Approaches Used to Prevent and Reduce Restrictive Interventions on Adults with Learning Disabilities in NHS and Independent Sector Settings
•LEARN SWAP: An exploration of the role of carers of institutionalised people with learning disabilities and long-term mental health co-morbidities in reducing restrictive practices
•LD Models of Care: Models of Care for People with Learning Disabilities and/or Autism with Forensic Needs Who Require Detention Under MHA In Secure Settings: A Mixed Methods Study
•HOPES: Evaluation of the National HOPE(S) Programme to end long-term segregation (LTS) for all children and young people, autistic people and/or people with learning disability in inpatient hospital settings
Research outputs
I am currently involved in a number of potential publications that are in preparation. Two of these are due to be submitted by the end of the year.
CONFERENCE PAPERS
Whyte, R. ‘The Role of Carers In Reducing Restrictive Practices For People With Learning Disabilities’ In 12th European Congress On Violence in Clinical Psychiatry Conference 2022. Rotterdam, 6/10/2022 - 8/10/2022.