Collaborative network for training and expertise in psychotraumatology
Mental health disorders afflict more than one-third of the EU’s population each year with an annual economic cost to the EU of €432 billion. The ‘COllaborative Network for Training and EXcellence in psychoTraumatology’ (CONTEXT) is an international, interdisciplinary European Industrial Doctorate (EID) designed to address deficiencies in psychotraumatology training and innovation. A key feature of CONTEXT is the minimum 50% secondment of each ESR to the non-academic sector. Consistent with the requirements of an EID, this component grants ESRs access to populations not otherwise accessible in standard doctoral training programmes. This design will facilitate a new cohort of researchers and practitioners who can translate research into practice, thereby mitigating the impact of psychotrauma in the EU. The goal of CONTEXT is to develop a high quality, innovative research training programme to build capacity and expertise, and foster innovative practice and social enterprise in the area of psychotraumatology. The nine beneficiaries of CONTEXT represent a diverse, interconnected, intersectoral consortium, well placed to collaboratively train and supervise the 12 ESRs. Three interconnected research work packages, each targeting a priority population in Europe (EU-based asylum seekers and refugees, WP3; emergency-service personnel and humanitarian first-responders, WP4; and victims and perpetrators of childhood- and gender-based violence, WP5), address current and emergent skill and professional deficiencies that are essential in curbing the adverse social consequences of trauma-related psychological distress within the EU. CONTEXT enjoys significant support and commitment from highly regarded, international stakeholders and influencers at the political, scientific, and professional level.