Meet the Equilibrium team
In establishing any new venture one of the key ingredients is to have exactly the right mix of committed and appropriately skilled people involved from the start. We are particularly pleased with the start-up team we have been able to put together. Although having a combination of professionals and "peer professionals", more than 50% of the team have either personal or direct family experience of bipolar disorder, or severe mood disorder.
Director -Trustees
Alan Ogilvie (MD), UK Equilibrium Medical Director
A psychiatrist who trained in Edinburgh including with the Medical Research Council and University of Cambridge. Now in Oxford UK where he has worked as a clinician and in Oxford University, Alan’s key interest is in the understanding and treatment of bipolar disorder. He has been involved in the care of many hundreds of people with this problem including a period being responsible for running a specialist treatment unit in Cambridge. He has published more than 22 articles in the area. He is a clinical expert adviser to the UK National Library for Health Mental Health Specialist Library.
Glyn Jarvis, UK - Equilibrium Director/Trustee
A clinical psychologist who originally had a strong background in the financial services sector. Former Program director of a unique cancer charity supporting psychological issues in the care of people with cancer. Glyn has been involved with this charity since start up in Edinburgh, UK. It has grown from £100,000 per year income initially and a single small base to a fundraised income of £5.5 million in the last financial year and 50,000 contacts with people with cancer across multiple centres in the UK. The first overseas centre is currently being set up in Hong Kong.
Felicity Bryan - Equilibrium Director/Trustee appointee
Felicity is a leading international literary agent based in Oxford and is a former journalist with The Financial Times, The Economist and The Evening Standard. Her mother suffered from bipolar disorder, as did her daughter Alice who took her life in 2004 aged 22.
Professional Board Members
Professor Guy Goodwin (MD), UK - Chair of Professional Board
W.A Handley Chair of Psychiatry, Oxford University.
Guy studied medicine and pharmacology in Oxford before training in psychiatry. As well as being recognised as an international field leading researcher in bipolar disorder he is also an excellent and highly experienced clinician who treats many people with severe bipolar disorder. He has published more than 198 scientific papers, and book chapters in the field.
Professor John Geddes, (MD), UK - Professional Board Member
Professor of Epidemiological Psychiatry, Oxford University.
John trained in psychiatry in Edinburgh and Oxford. His research interests are particularly in large scale independent treatment trials and applications of state of the art information technology to neuroscientific and psychiatry research in bipolar disorder. He has published more than 40 articles in the area and currently is the principal investigator in one of the largest independent treatment trials of bipolar disorder.
Professor Nick Craddock
MA, MB, ChB, MMedSci, PhD, FRCPsych
Professor of Psychiatry, Department of Psychological Medicine, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Wales, UK. Nick studied mathematical sciences in Cambridge followed by medicine in Birmingham. He trained in psychiatry in Birmingham and in genetics in Cardiff and St Louis. His research focus is using molecular genetics to improve diagnosis and management of bipolar illness. He has published over 180 research articles and is also Scientific Advisor to the Manic Depression Fellowship – The Bipolar Organization (England and Wales). He is head of the Cardiff University Psychiatry Service where he specializes in diagnosis and management of bipolar disorder.
Dr Alan Ogilvie - Professional Board Member
Medical Director Equilibrium
Other advisors:
John McManamy, USA (aka McMan)
We are delighted to announce that John McManamy, in our opinion, the best health journalist in the area of bipolar disorders is joining Equilibrium as a special adviser and will be working with us to integrate his most rapidly updated news service into this website.
John suffers from bipolar disorder him self, remains on medication and has been in the past both a lawyer and a financial journalist before making the decision to work in the mental health area. He now live in the hills near San Diego in California and as well as writing, running his newsletter and website assists in a local depression and bipolar support group and plays the didgeridoo. John also recently wrote the widely acclaimed book : "Living Well with Depression and Bipolar Disorder: What Your Doctor Doesn't Tell You...That You Need to Know" click for Amazon page of book
John
was yesterday 8th June 2007 awarded the highly prestigious Mogens Schou
award for public service in Bipolar Disorder by the International
Society for Bipolar Disorders which was presented in Pittsburgh at the
International Conference for Bipolar Disorders, attended by more than
300 psychiatrists, psychologists and some advocacy leaders form all
over the world.
Katy Sara Culling, UK
Team member who has suffered from severe, protracted bipolar I disorder and was previously a doctoral student in Clinical Medicine at the University of Oxford. Katy Sara is now well and after writing up her DPhil she decided she wanted to spend more time writing, mainly about bipolar disorder and psychiatry, and her first book Dark Clouds Gather (autobiographical) is now available - details here. Her second book Too Good For This World, a collection of bipolar stories is now available - details here. Katy Sara also spends her time working in medical research, and helping fellow survivors of bipolar disorder through charitable organisations whilst trying to maintain her own good mental health. For example, she is an administrator and moderator on the Stephen Fry forum where she focuses her attention on The Secret Life of The Manic Depressive section of the forum. She is an advocate for all survivors of this illness and believes that an "expert patient" system could be highly beneficial. She has a particular interest in improving diagnosis and treatment for mixed bipolar disorder states as this terrible form of bipolar disorder caused her significant, almost lethal problems and was not easily recognised. Katy also has a website found at: www.katysaraculling.com which she hopes to build into a website that tackles bipolar disorder and stigma, though on a smaller level than The Bipolar Foundation.
Click for Amazon.com page for memoir or Amazon.co.uk Click here Amazon.com page for the short stories book or here Amazon.co.uk.
Emily Hargus, US
Previously Director of Marketing with Sun Microsystems originally having trained in Nuclear Engineering and having been Director of Marketing and Software Development at Westinghouse. She has also worked for Oracle, and Siebel. She has a very strong background in corporate affairs and strategic planning. Emily has recently switched careers and is currently doing a PhD in psychology in Oxford University focussing on causes and prevention of suicide. With her business and high level management experience she is giving input as a consultant and assistance both corporate and individual fundraising
Adam Levin UK
Adam is a London based corporate partner with the international law firm Dechert LLP. He specialises in private equity transactions, domestic and international acquisitions and disposals, joint ventures and corporate advisory work. Adam regularly advise private equity clients on transactional matters, including Platinum Equity, Crossroads Capital, New World Resources and Klesch. He was formerly a partner at Baker and Mackenzie, London and Church & Grace, Sydney qualified as a solicitor at Slaughter and May and joined Dechert in September 2005. Adam has a law degree from Kings College, London and is admitted to practice in England and Wales, qualifying in 1989 as well as in New South Wales, Australia, since 1991.
Melissa Sheard, UK
MPhil chemist by training. Currently freelance fundraising consultant. Has previously been involved in raising £60 million for a new chemistry building at Oxford University, and most recently has helped raise over £10 million for one of the Oxford Colleges.
