New centre for women's mental health research to launch in Oxford
Experts say it will fill gaps in knowledge and help create new treatments for women
A new research centre dedicated to women's mental health is being established at the University of Oxford.
It will bring together experts from medical, biological and humanities disciplines to improve understanding of issues as well as developing new treatments and strategies.
The centre is a partnership between the university's Department of Psychiatry, the Nuffield Department of Women's and Reproductive Health (NDWRH), and colleagues from across the university, including the Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities.
Funded by Oxford's Medical Sciences Division Strategic Research Fund, it will be led by a new Professor of Women's Mental Health – the first role of its kind at the university.
Researchers say the centre will address long-standing gaps in knowledge and aims to influence policy and healthcare practice both in the UK and internationally.
Professor Belinda Lennox, Head of the Department of Psychiatry, said: "Despite living longer than men, women spend more of their lives in poor health and have higher rates of mood and anxiety disorders across the life course.
"Yet a 'male as default' approach has meant there is a major knowledge gap, with causes and mechanisms of women's mental ill health poorly understood, and treatments rarely being sex specific."
She added: "The urgent global need and interest in improving women's mental health has never been greater. Our centre will be at the forefront of this work, harnessing Oxford's unique breadth of expertise and fostering collaboration and innovation."
The centre will build on existing research already taking place at Oxford, including studies into severe mental illness in new mothers, the effects of hormones on psychosis treatment, and the impact of menopause on brain health.
According to the university, more than 500 million people worldwide are currently experiencing a mental health disorder, while suicide remains the leading cause of death among new mothers in the UK.
Professor Krina Zondervan, Head of the Nuffield Department of Women's and Reproductive Health, said women's mental health has historically been "under-researched and under-prioritised" despite its impact throughout life.
She said: "This new centre creates an opportunity to bring together expertise from across disciplines to better understand the biological, social and cultural factors that shape women's mental health, and ultimately improve care and outcomes worldwide."
It will also incorporate perspectives from the humanities, exploring how culture, lived experience and storytelling can contribute to understanding and improving women's mental wellbeing.