DIVISION OF SPORT AND EXERCISE PSYCHOLOGYANNUAL CONFERENCE 202129 - 30 NOVEMBER 2021, CROWNE PLAZA LIVERPOOL
Dr Amanda Gatherer
Biography
Dr Amanda Gatherer is an experienced Consultant Clinical Psychologist and has worked extensively in both the NHS and in elite sport. She has recently retired from her NHS post of Chief Psychologist for Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health Trust, but does continue to work part-time within the NHS specialising in providing clinical support to staff across health and social care as part of the NHS England pandemic response. Amanda is now able to focus more of her time on providing Clinical Psychology input to the elite sport system. She is one of three practitioners who make up the EIS Mental Health Expert Panel in addition to being the Mental Health Lead for Paralympics GB for the Tokyo cycle. For the past 15 years Amanda has worked closely with colleagues within elite sport to improve the support offered to athletes and staff relating to mental health and wellbeing, and welcomes this opportunity to showcase how clinical and sports performance psychology can work together and the various benefits that can bring for individuals and the wider system.Joint presentation with Miss Hannah Brooks
Better Together: The benefits of Clinical and Sport Performance
Psychology collaboration within high performance sport
In this presentation we will discuss our experiences of working together as Clinical and Sport Performance Psychologists within elite / high performance sport. We will consider sport specific examples where we have been able to influence athlete and staff functioning, alongside wider system and organisational impact. We will highlight some of the potential barriers to collaboration and draw on learning from colleagues within the English Institute of Sport, wider sports environments and international forums. We will explore the interface between mental health and performance within the context of our professional roles, and we hope that our significant experience will be helpful in enabling others to consider how to progress in this area.