Pneuma Healthcare: boosting local employment and tackling the NHS mental health waiting list crisis

Although Pneuma Healthcare has been up and running for some time now, last week saw the official launch of our company at the University of Ulster in Coleraine. 

It was a great occasion for everybody involved in our success and as we near the end of 2022, it seems appropriate to reflect on the incredible achievements made by Pneuma Healthcare during the past year, and the great work we’re doing towards reducing NHS waiting lists for mental health services throughout the UK. We’re now also working with the Greater Manchester Health Trust - one of the largest trusts in the UK - where our Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners (PWPs) are helping to treat people with common mental health problems such as depression and anxiety.

What’s more, thanks to our unique partnership with Ulster University, we’ve proud to have been able to provide employment opportunities for local graduates, enabling them to put their abilities to good use where they’re needed most. We currently have ten PWPs on staff, and we’re looking to expand by bringing an additional two staff members into the team in the new year, with more to follow in the course of 2023.

Pneuma Healthcare was founded in response to research carried out by Dr Orla McDevitt-Petrovic, which found that shorter, lower-intensity sessions of mental health support could be almost as effective as more traditional models of treatment. Dr McDevitt-Petrovic was able to demonstrate that ‘low-intensity cognitive behavioural therapy’ - provided via telephone or video-conferencing - led to a reliable improvement in 80% of clients, and full recovery in more than 50%.

This presented a clear opportunity: not only could effective support be more easily provided for people living with disabilities or in remote locations (who may find in-person services difficult to access), but NHS waiting lists for mental health services could also be dramatically improved.

Pneuma’s founder Dr Colin Gorman said:

“At Pneuma Healthcare, we are breathing life back into mental health services. Our technology-first approach means Pneuma’s NI-based staff can effectively and efficiently treat patients anywhere in the world. While the majority of the patients they are currently treating are based in Britain, the company is working with local health trusts to explore embedding Pneuma services in NI.”

At Pneuma, our dedicated team is looking forward to continuing to provide this valuable support to those that need it, and to expanding our services even further in the new year and beyond.