What is a Clinical Psychologist and what do we do?
What is Clinical Psychology?
Clinical Psychology is a branch of Psychology that incorporates the science of human behaviour into the treatment of mental health problems. We use the scientific background and research findings to underpin everything that we do on a clinical basis, and this scientific underpinning will guide the work that we do with you or your client.
As a minimum, a Clinical Psychologist will have completed a degree in Psychology and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, although many Clinical Psychologists have completed more than this. Qualifications and experience are recognised by the professional body that represents Clinical Psychologists, the British Psychological Society and those Clinical Psychologists who meet all of the Society’s standards for entry to the voluntary register are granted the title, ‘Chartered Clinical Psychologist'. Statutory regulation for Clinical Psychologists is provided by the Health and Care Professions Council and all practicing Clinical Psychologists must be registered with the HCPC.
What treatments do you offer?
We don't give you a menu of different options to choose from - everyone is different and what we will do when we meet up is to try and work out what you or your client would like to achieve with our help. We then decide on how we are going to go about this and take things from there. Your therapy will draw upon theory from a number of different areas as this makes our approach tailor-made for you.
Do I have to come to you or can you come to me?
Our work is predominantly carried out in the client’s own home, but in practice, there are few limits to where we can meet. We have clinic space that we can book at our base near Cambridge and are more than happy to accommodate any other locations as appropriate
How long will an appointment be?
We would anticipate that an initial therapy appointment would be no longer than an hour or so. If you have been referred for an assessment, it may be longer, but remember, you are in the driving seat.
What geographical areas do you cover?
We have clients across Eastern England and the South East.
Who do you take referrals from?
We welcome self referrals from individuals and recommend that you give us a call to discuss the difficulties that you may be having. We also welcome referrals for assessment, opinion, recommendation and intervention from Case Managers, the legal profession and other Allied Health Professionals. Additionally, we have experience in areas including medico-legal work following road traffic accidents, criminal conviction and assessments required for legal process such as appeals. Some of this work has been international.
Why are you called Meridian Psychology Cambridge?
We looked for a name that reflected our core geographical area, hence 'Cambridge'! But what you may not realise is that the Greenwich Meridian (the imaginary line where east meets west) runs straight through the East of England, and is just down the road from where our office is based.