Welcome to the third edition of the Department of Psychiatry newsletter for 2026. It has been a busy few months, with awards and grants to celebrate and a full calendar of events ahead.
Congratulations to Dr Alec Jamieson, who was awarded a 2026 BBRF Young Investigator Grant and the BPA ECRN Travel Grant; to Michael Mercieca, who received the RMH Honours Department of Psychiatry Award; and to Dr Dhamidhu Eratne, who was named a finalist for the Clinician Researcher Award in the 2026 Premier's Awards for Health and Medical Research.
Our academic calendar continues to grow, and the monthly Seminar Series is drawing strong attendance both in person and online. The annual Mental Health Symposium, featuring the Alice Barber Public Lecture, will be held on 27 October; this year's lecture will be given by Professor Lucia Valmaggia of the Centre for Youth Mental Health and Orygen. The Wellbeing in Ageing Team (WiAT) Symposium is on 9 October, and the Department's End of Year Symposium and Awards on 9 December. I encourage everyone to attend.
Finally, this remains a difficult funding environment, and I want to acknowledge the effort that goes into sustaining our research in the face of it. The recent Early and Mid-Career Researcher Showcase was a good reminder of the quality of work being done across the Department, and of the strength of the next generation of researchers coming through.
Professor Chris Davey Head of Department of Psychiatry
View the full newsletter by clicking on all the news articles below.
