Aims & History
The BAP Office in Cambridge
The BAP was founded in 1974, with the general intention of bringing together those from clinical and experimental disciplines as well as members of the pharmaceutical industry involved in the study of psychopharmacology. To this end the Association arranges scientific meetings, fosters research and teaching, encourages publication of results of research and provides guidance and information to the public on matters relevant to psychopharmacology, where appropriate
The BAP organises scientific meetings and symposia during the course of the year, covering all aspects of psychopharmacology from basic research to pharmaceutical development and clinical application. The Association has produced a range of consensus statements on the treatment of clinical disorders as well as on the investigation of psychopharmaceutical compounds.
The BAP has an extensive educational portfolio. Now in its twelfth year, the Certificate in Clinical Psychopharmacology provides up-to-date CPD and consists of three Core modules held each year: Anxiety Disorders, Schizophrenia and Affective Disorders. Specialist, optional modules include Substance Misuse, Drug Treatments in Old Age Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology.
The BAP launched the Preclinical Certificate in Psychopharmacology in July 2001. The aim of this Course is to increase awareness of, expertise and interest in, preclinical psychopharmacology through the provision of a series of training modules that cover key aspects of research on animals and humans as well as career development.
In September 2006 the BAP organised an Experimental Psychopharmacology Summer School in collaboration with Institute of Neuroscience, University of Nottingham. The Summer School built upon the success of the Preclinical Certificate in Psychopharmacology. The 5-day course comprised interactive lectures and workshops which covered key aspects of experimental psychopharmacology. Topics included: appraisals of basic experimental protocols; optimizing experimental design and data analysis; recent research findings/techniques; and prospects for novel experimental approaches in the future.
In April 2007, BAP launched three one-day educational programmes to cover pharmacological aspects of psychiatric disorders. This replaced the highly successful “Refresher Course” which ran for one day and was therefore limited in its scope. The new Masterclasses programme, which runs twice each year, includes updates of the psychopharmacology of treatment and management of schizophrenia and comorbidity on day 1; bipolar disorder, perinatal psychiatry and ADHD on day 2; and depression, anxiety, and sleep on day 3. The Masterclasses are particularly relevant for Consultants but also appropriate for those who have been working in psychiatry for some time and need to refresh their psychopharmacology.
The BAP is one of the largest national psychopharmacology associations in the world.
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- InVivoStat Statistical Analysis on
23rd August 2010
New BAP Education web page describing InVivoStat: The Statistical Tool for all Psychopharmacologists. Click here to read more InVivoStat - Information for the Public on
4th August 2010
We are pleased to launch our Public Web Pages. These are intended for members of the public with an interest in psychopharmacology. Public Web Page - Review of Mental Health Research on
5th July 2010
In 2009, BAP contributed to the Medical Research Council’s Review of Mental Health Research. The Report has recently been published. A summary report may be found here; MRC Mental Health Research Summary Report. Professor Barbara Sahakian, who will become BAP President-elect later this month, has written an article in the Lancet “A UK strategy for mental health and wellbeing”, also available here; Lancet article