Dr Catherine Durkin

Dr Durkin is a highly experienced consultant psychiatrist. She is employed as the clinical lead for the female service line within Health & Justice services, Central & North West London Foundation Trust. She has clinical oversight of three busy female prisons and lead on patient quality and safety. She has previously worked as both a community and inpatient consultant forensic psychiatrist for South West London & St George’s NHS Trust.

She has particular expertise working with women with a range of psychiatric and physical health comorbidities having gained extensive experience of managing the highly complex mental and physical health presentations of women in custody. She has developed a holistic viewpoint when managing women’s mental health presentations, which incorporates a detailed assessment of their physical wellbeing, neurodevelopmental histories, past experiences (including adversity and trauma) and interpersonal relationships, in order to fully understand their mental health presentations.

She gained her specialist registration as a Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist from the Royal College of Psychiatrists in 2015. She undertook her specialist training as part of the South London Forensic Training Rotation and she received training at the Institute of Psychiatry, part of South London & the Maudsley.

She was awarded an MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery) with distinction by St George’s Hospital Medical School, University of London. She completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Cambridge and her MSc at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, funded by a scholarship from the Medical Research Council.

She has particular expertise in the recognition and treatment of ASD and ADHD amongst women and also PTSD and complex PTSD. She also works extensively with personality disorders. She has gained additional training and expertise in neurodevelopmental disorders and has completed training in the DIVA, ADOS and ADI. She is the lead clinician establishing a neurodiversity pathway within Health & Justice services and is undertaking research into ADHD amongst women in prison. She has an interest and in depth understanding of the role of trauma in women’s mental health presentations and is highly experienced in the areas of PTSD and Complex PTSD She also focuses on interpersonal relationship and dynamics as a core part of understanding mental health presentations.

Dr Durkin has been selected as the National Lead for Women’s Mental Health for the Royal College of Psychiatrists
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