We are a small team of Clinical Psychologists working alongside the Gastroenterology and Intestinal Failure teams at Salford Royal Hospital.
Your Consultant Gastroenterologist based at Salford Royal Hospital, Intestinal Failure Doctor, or a suitably qualified member of their team may refer you to help support you with difficulties in your psychological well-being.
We are registered with the Health Care and Professions Council and work to their standards for safe and effective practice.
Unlike medical doctors, we do not prescribe medication. We do work alongside your medical or surgical team and, where appropriate, provide them with guidance on how best to support your needs.
Meet the Gastroenterology and Intestinal Failure Psychology Services team:
Dr Katherine Gerrard
Principal Clinical Psychologist - Gastrointestinal Psychology Service
Katherine completed her undergraduate (BSc) and Masters (MPhil) degrees in Psychology at the University of Manchester, and went on to complete her doctoral (DClinPsy) degree at the University of Liverpool.
Katherine has worked with people with long term conditions since 2013, and currently specialises in working with adults with a wide range of gastrointestinal conditions within the Gastrointestinal Psychology Service at Salford Royal Hospital. Katherine uses cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), compassion focused therapy (CFT), and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) approaches in her therapeutic work.
Her research and clinical interests include Gastrointestinal conditions, Chronic pain, Compassion-focused approaches.
She currently holds membership with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).
Publications:
- Preferences for psychological therapy in psychosis: trial participation, mode of treatment, and willingness to be randomised. Journal of Mental Health, 23(2), 67–71.
Sumner, K., Haddock, G., Hartley, S., Kilbride, M., McCusker, M., Pitt, L., Woodward, S., & Barrowclough, C. (2014).
Dr Candice Walton
Senior Clinical Psychologist – Gastrointestinal Service
Candice Walton completed her undergraduate (BSc) and Masters in psychological research (MRes) degrees at the University of Manchester, before completing her doctoral (DClinPsy) degree at the University of Liverpool.
Candice developed an interest in the psychological needs of individuals with long-term physical health conditions during training. Her doctoral thesis explored attitudes towards seeking psychological help in the context of cancer.
Candice specialises in working with adults with a wide range of gastrointestinal conditions within the Gastrointestinal Psychology service at Salford Royal Hospital.
In her therapeutic work, Candice adopts an integrative approach, drawing upon a range of evidence-based therapeutic models to meet individual need, such as cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), Acceptance and commitment Therapy (ACT), Compassion Focussed Therapy (CFT) and EMDR.
She is registered with the Health Care Professions Council (HCPC).
Her research and clinical interests include Gastrointestinal conditions, Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, mind-body interactions, Compassion-focused approaches and Trauma-Informed care.
Publications:
- “The tonic’s not always in a bottle”: a qualitative study investigating a heart rate variability biofeedback coherence intervention for individuals with gastrointestinal disorders. Journal of Complexity in Health Sciences, 5(1): 1–14. doi: 10.21595/chs.2021.22069
Field, L., Forshaw, M., Poole, H., Paine, P., Fairclough, G., & Walton, C. (2022). - An investigation of the implementation of NICE-recommended CBT interventions for people with schizophrenia. Journal of Mental Health, 23(4):162-5. doi: 10.3109/09638237.2013.869571.
Haddock, G., Eisner, E., Boone, C., Davies, G., Coogan, C., & Barrowclough, C. (2014).
Dr Katherine Twist
Consultant Clinical Psychologist
Dr Katherine Twist is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist on preceptorship working in the Intestinal Failure (IF) service primarily with oversight over the Gastrointestinal services.
Dr Twist completed her undergraduate degree (Psychology BSc) at the University of York and her master’s degree (Health Psychology MSc) at the University of Bath. Throughout both degrees, she always had a special interest in long-term health conditions and worked in diabetes and cardiovascular research for 5 years at King’s College London and the Institute of Psychiatry, before completing her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology (DClinPsy) at The University of Manchester.
Post qualification, Katherine worked in a Cystic Fibrosis service at Liverpool heart and Chest hospital before joining the Gastrointestinal Psychology Service and Intestinal Failure Unit at Salford Royal Hospital at the beginning of 2019. She has undertaken further specialist training in psychological therapies for physical health conditions and uses an integrative approach consisting of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), Acceptance and commitment Therapy (ACT), Compassion Focussed Therapy (CFT), Mindfulness and EMDR in her therapeutic work.
Dr Twist has a strong research background and enjoys the variety of research and service development activities that take place in the department. Her own doctoral research was on the experiences of patients with Gastrointestinal Dysmotility from symptom onset to diagnosis and has presented this and other work at national conferences. She is involved in teaching on Clinical Psychology Doctoral programmes and she clinically supervises doctoral research projects and trainees. She currently holds membership with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC)
Your consultant based at Salford Royal Hospital, or a suitably qualified member of the Gastrointestinal or Intestinal Failure teams may refer you to help support you with difficulties in your psychological well-being.
Publications:
- In their shoes: Health care professionals walking a day in the life of patients with short bowel syndrome & intestinal failure. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN, 53, 26-32. Twist, K., Kelly, S., & Lal, S. (2023).
- Glucagon-like peptide 2 analogues in the treatment of intestinal failure: a qualitative exploration of the views of patients and their families in decision making. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN. Sowerbutts, A.M., Burden, S., Griffiths, J., Abraham, A., Farrer, K., Leahy, G., Teubner, A., Cloutier, A., Twist, K., Kelly, S. and Lal, S., (2021).
- Factors affecting antidepressant use by patients requiring Home Parenteral Nutrition. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 2021 Feb 22. doi: 10.1002/jpen.2090. Cloutier A, Deutsch L, Miller B, Leahy G, Ablett J, Healey A, Twist K, Teubner A, Abraham A, Taylor M, Pironi L, Lal S.
- Reducing weight and increasing physical activity in people at high-risk of cardiovascular disease: A randomised controlled trial comparing the effectiveness of enhanced motivational interviewing intervention with usual care. Heart, 2020; 106:447–454. doi:10.1136/ heartjnl-2019-315656. Ismail, K., Bayley, A., Twist, K., Stewart, K., Ridge, K., Britneff, E., Greenough, A., Ashworth, M., Rundle, J., Cook, D., Whincup, P., Treasure, J., McCrone, P., Winkley, K., Stahl, D. (2019).
- Gastrointestinal dysmotility: A qualitative exploration of the journey from symptom onset to diagnosis. Twist, K., Ablett, J., Wearden, A., Paine, P., Vasant, D.,Lal, Simon and Peters, S. (2018). Neurogastroenterology & Motility. 30. doi: e13339. 10.1111/nmo.13339.
- Comparing the effectiveness of an enhanced MOtiVational intErviewing InTervention (MOVE IT) with usual care for reducing cardiovascular risk in high risk subjects: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial. Trials, 16, 112. Bayley, A, de Zoysa, N, Cook, DG, Whincup, PH, Stahl, D, Twist, K, Ridge, K, McCrone, P, Treasure, J, Ashworth, M, Greenough, A, Blythe, C, Winkley, K and Ismail, K. (2015).
- Comparison of Depressive Symptoms in Type 2 Diabetes Using a Two-Stage Survey Design. Psychosomatic medicine, 75 (8), 791-797. Twist, K., Stahl, D., Amiel, S. A., Thomas. S, Winkley, K and Ismail, K. (2013).
Clare completed her undergraduate degree (Psychology BSc) at the University of Bolton and her master’s degree (Clinical and Health Psychology) at the University of Manchester. Her research and clinical interests include gastrointestinal conditions, renal conditions and working with experts by experience patient group members. Clare’s thesis looked at the physical and psychological impacts of COVID-19 on patients diagnosed with Crohn’s disease.
Dr Richards completed her BSc Psychology (Hons) from the University of Leeds, her MSc Clinical and Health Psychology from the University of Manchester, and D.Clin.Psychol accreditation from Lancaster University, qualifying as a clinical psychologist in 2024. She is a clinical psychologist working across Gastro and Renal Psychology Services. She has a special research interest in suicide and self-harm.
Her clinical interests include facilitating individuals under gastro and renal services to manage the emotional impact of their condition as well as improve coping with medication adherence.
Publications:
- Online harms? Suicide-related online experience: a UK-wide case series study of young people who die by suicide. Psychological medicine, 1-12. Rodway, C., Tham, S. G., Richards, N., Ibrahim, S., Turnbull, P., Kapur, N., & Appleby, L. (2022).
- Suicide rates by ethnic group among patients in contact with mental health services: an observational cohort study in England and Wales. The Lancet Psychiatry, 8(12), 1083-1093. Hunt, I. M., Richards, N., Bhui, K., Ibrahim, S., Turnbull, P., Halvorsrud, K., ... & Kapur, N. (2021).
- Suicide in England in the COVID-19 pandemic: Early observational data from real time surveillance. The Lancet Regional Health-Europe, 4, 100110.DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lanepe.2021.100110. Appleby, L., Richards, N., Ibrahim, S., Turnbull, P., Rodway, C., & Kapur, N. (2021).
Experiencing GI difficulties can have a considerable impact on you and your life. Some of the reasons you may find it helpful to meet with us include:
- feeling stressed about your health or wider circumstances;
- losing interest or enjoyment in life;
- feeling frustrated or distressed about your symptoms;
- feeling overwhelmed by your medical treatment or admission;
- viewing yourself or your body differently;
- struggling to come to terms with changes or losses;
- difficulties with your social life or relationships
There may also be wider issues that you are wanting support with. We work together with you to understand the nature of your difficulties and to agree an individualised plan of how to address these.
We use different types of therapeutic approaches that may help you to deal with the psychological difficulties linked to your health and ensure your connection to the things that matter most to you in life.
These approaches will involve working together to bring about change.
Clinical Health Psychology Department
Clinical Science Building
Salford Royal Hospital
Stott Lane
Salford
M6 8HD
We are located on the ground floor of the Clinical Sciences Building, with the entrance opposite A&E. You should receive a map with your appointment letter, which will include the location of our car parks. The most convenient car park for accessing the Clinical Sciences Building is the North car park. Please be mindful that there can be queues for parking at times, so allow plenty of time to get to your appointment.
Use this link to access directions to Salford Royal.
Accessibility
As a service, we pride ourselves on being inclusive. We are aware that illness and disease affect everyone and we will strive to offer a responsive and sensitive service to you whatever your lifestyle or faith, and take account of your cultural and linguistic needs. We are also open to receive feedback on our service to continually improve and encourage those of you who have attended the department to let us know your experiences and any ideas you have.
There is wheelchair-friendly access to the building via a ramp. Please let us know if you require any other adjustments to enable you to access the building.
Please note that we are not a crisis team, and we are not able to provide on-the-day appointments. If you feel that you need urgent mental health support, or you do not feel able to keep yourself safe, then please contact your or GP, your local crisis team or attend A&E. If you are an inpatient at Salford Royal, or you do attend A&E, then you may be referred to The Department of Clinical Health Psychology offers psychological therapy for adults who would like support with their psychological issues connected to their physical health difficulties.
We work closely with medical and allied health professionals in each team to deliver high quality psychological care alongside medical care. We are not medical doctors and do not prescribe medication. Please see each speciality for further information.
If you are an inpatient at Salford Royal, or you do attend A&E, then you may be referred to the Mental Health Liaison Team. There is also an Out of Hours Helpline available.
Referrals are accepted for people aged 18 years or over, or 16-17 years if not in full time education. There is no upper age limit providing the criteria for referral are met, although in some circumstances an Older Adult Mental Health Team may be appropriate for people over the age of 75.
We ask that referrals are made by a qualified medical professional or a member of staff who is part of an allied health profession.
We are unable to accept referrals for people who:
- Suffer from head injuries, dementia or neurological problems
- Are already taking part in psychological therapy elsewhere. Under some exceptional circumstances it may be necessary to receive treatment with another mental health team at the same time as undergoing therapy at the Department of Clinical Health Psychology, e.g. when a person is already being seen by a Community Mental Health Team, Substance Misuse Team etc.
- We are happy to receive referrals for people who suffer from a learning disability as well as a health condition. We are unable to accept referrals for individuals who only wish to focus on issues connected with their learning disability.
Currently we do not offer home visits.
Due to a very high demand on our service, we regret that there are waiting lists. Due to this there will be a delay before people are offered their first appointment.
Referrals can be made in referral letter, email to psychology.referrals@srft.nhs.uk and order on EPR.
Please do not hesitate to contact us should you wish to discuss a referral or a patient’s psychological wellbeing.
There are lots of different resources that can be helpful in supporting you to make changes with regards to gastroenterology. Here are a few of those that you might find useful.
Books
Living with a Stoma
Author: Professor Craig A. White (2010)
ISBN-10: 184709077X
Explains in clear, straightforward terms all aspects of living with a stoma, including ways to make you feel more comfortable with it, overcome embarrassment, and get the best support.
Living with IBS
Author: Dr Nuno Ferreira & Dr David T. Gillanders (2012)
ISBN-10: 1921966149
Instead of constantly fighting your symptoms, this approach will teach you how to step away from the struggle, and in so doing, substantially reduce their impact.
Mindfulness for Health
Author: Vidyamala Burch & Danny Penman (2013)
ISBN-10: 9780749959241
Series of simple practices that you can incorporate into your daily life to relieve chronic pain and the suffering and stress of illness
Websites
A registered charity for individuals experiencing inflammatory bowel disease. Provides information and support for individuals, families, carers and professionals.
National charity supporting individuals with Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Provide advice and support, including a self-care programme.