Online only - One on one with Deborah Christie
One person who inspired
you
My dad, who died in October, was my greatest inspiration – he was proud of everything
that I did and taught me how to teach and talk, how to debate, but most of all
taught me that as long as you have a dream you can achieve anything you put
your mind to.
One moment that changed the course of your career
My research professor telling me I would make a better clinician than a
researcher and offering to fund my training!
One book that you think all psychologists should read
Kolb and Whishaw’s Fundamentals of Human Neuropsychology - great for
understanding basic brain behaviour relationships and underpinning good
neuropsychological assessments. And I am going to cheat and also say Dale
Carnegie’s How to win friends and influence people. My dad again – he loved
this book and gave it to me when I was about 12. Understanding how to
engage with people and influence change at personal, professional and
institutional level is fascinating and as relevant today as it was when it was
first published over 50 years ago.
One thing
that you would change about psychology / psychologists
Their apparent allergy to research and measuring
outcomes.
One
challenge you think psychology faces
I think we need to clearly demonstrate our value in the context of the medical
model we are often working in and articulate clearly what we can bring to
paediatrics and adolescent medicine.
One regret
Je ne regret
rien.
One
nugget of advice for aspiring psychologists
Find a mentor and role model and work your socks off for them. Do the stuff that
seems easy really well and volunteer for anything and everything. Always look
interested – even when you are bored. Show people your enthusiasm and your
passion and ask questions all the time.
One
cultural recommendation (i.e. Book, film, music)
Milan Kundera’s The unbearable lightness of being, and Annie because the
sun’ll come out tomorrow.
One
alternative career path you may have chosen
West End Stage musical lead (my grandpa was a musical hall artiste!!) – I still
have frustrated ambitions and have to stop myself auditioning for the X factor
One
hero / heroine from psychology past or present
Maslow - my dad gave me a book when I was about 12 all about the hierarchy of needs
and what motivates people – and I was hooked.
One
thing that organised psychology (e.g. the BPS / APA) could do better
Communicate more with psychologists, be a lot more visible and less inward
looking.
One
great thing that psychology has achieved
Creating alternative non-pathologising discourses to explain behaviour and
emotional distress.
One
problem that psychology should deal with
Obesity
One
hope for the future of psychology
The dedicated and determined young people who put up with being unpaid
assistant psychologists in order to get onto training courses.
One proud moment
Isn't pride a sin? How about (sparkling) moments of intense joy
instead......Too many for just one… being at my oldest son's wedding… being at
my youngest son's graduation defense in Italy… my dad climbing Ben Nevis 2
years ago at 80… my 83-year-old mum joining in a Zumba class at New Year… our
diabetes team winning this years Health Services Journal award… I could go on
and on.
One
psychological superpower I’d like to have
To always know the one question to ask that will make the difference.
One
resource of your own
My resource is the amazing team that I have the privilege to work with at UCLH
– their skills, enthusiasm and commitment to improving the lives of children,
young people and their families is awe inspiring. They are also great fun to
work with and make coming to work (most days) a pleasure.
One final thought
I always liked the song 'The cowboys
and the Farmers should be friends’. I would love to be able to rewrite it as
the psychologists and the psychiatrists should be friends. There has to be a
way for psychiatrists and psychologists to stop competing and work together
creatively and collaboratively instead of the current situation.
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