About JUICE
The JUICE Youth Mental Health Research Unit, set up by Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, is dedicated to improving the mental well-being of young people. Established in 2018 by Professor Alison Yung and Dr Heather Law JUICE Youth Mental Health Research Unit is now headed up by renowned Clinical Psychologist, Professor Sophie Parker.
It has grown to the point where there are multiple staff working across numerous clinical trials (both single site and multi-centre) and other innovative, ground breaking research.
This group of highly skilled researchers work tirelessly to advance our understanding of mental health issues such as psychosis, bipolar disorder, and related health concerns for young people.
our vision at JUICE is to use high quality research to empower every young person to live happy and healthy lives, despite the challenges that they face
We believe in a normalising approach with regard to mental health and promoting a comprehensive approach to treating young people’s difficulties!
Our work is aimed at reducing young people’s distress and improve the autonomy and dignity of those affected and their loved ones. To achieve this goal, we involve adolescent service users and individuals with lived experience in every aspect of our research, from development to dissemination.
Our Team includes service user researchers, and a Youth Service User Reference Group that provides a crucial perspective on our research efforts.
Our Research at Juice Mental Health Research Unit is focused on early intervention, prevention of long-term mental health problems, reducing stigma and discrimination, and improving psychosocial interventions.
We believe that early intervention is key to mitigating the long-term effects of serious mental health problems, and our research efforts aim to prevent the onset of these conditions in young people. We are developing improvements in predicting psychosis in our IPPACT study and the potential benefits of CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) for those meeting bipolar at-risk criteria in out BART II study
In addition, our Team is dedicated to reducing stigma and discrimination surrounding mental health issues and promoting understanding and acceptance.
We are also exploring the potential benefits of exercise in treating psychosis and those at risk of psychosis and promoting physical health for service users. Exercise has been shown to have a positive impact on mental health, and our research aims to understand the specific mechanisms at work.
By understanding the role of exercise in mental health, we hope to provide new and innovative treatment options for those affected. Please check out our related studies Y-Health & Motiv8
Our mission is to undertake outstanding and innovative mental health research for young people. With young people at the heart of everything we do, our research will improve access to evidence based treatments and support which makes a difference in the real world.
Finally, JUICE Youth Mental Health Research Unit is committed to training and supervising mental health professionals in our EDIT Teams, including psychological therapists, in providing high quality assessment and treatment for those with psychosis and those at risk of developing long-term mental health problems.
We believe that by training mental health professionals, we can provide better care for those affected and improve overall mental health outcomes.
In conclusion, the JUICE Youth Mental Health Research Unit is dedicated to advancing our understanding of mental health issues and improving the lives of young people affected by these conditions.
Through our focus on early intervention, reducing stigma and discrimination, and innovative research, we hope to make a lasting impact on mental health outcomes for young people.
