Professor in Psychiatry combined with position as specialist trained physician at Stockholms läns sjukvårdsområde

- with focus on research

Do you want to contribute to top quality medical research?

At the Department of Clinical Neuroscience (CNS), we research and teach about brain function - from the molecular level to the societal level. We are organized into five departments and teach prospective speech therapists, occupational therapists, doctors, opticians, orthoptists, psychologists, and physiotherapists. The clinical research and education in the majority of what we do is done in collaboration with the Stockholm Region and with other research groups at Karolinska Institutet.

The Center for Psychiatry Research (CPF), one of the 2 largest clinical divisions within CNS with approximately 400 employed and/or affiliated researchers, has currently one professorship in general psychiatry. It is therefore important to strengthen the competence in psychiatry, and specifically in the area of major depressive disorders.

Description of the subject area

According to WHO, 40 million people are living with depression across Europe and it is projected to be the leading cause of disease burden in high income countries. This diagnostic group is also the largest psychiatric patient group currently with primary care or psychiatric services in the Stockholm county council.

The announced position as Professor in Psychiatry is directed to an M.D. to lead and support research in the area of pathophysiology and pharmacology of depression in patients, in order to improve CPF’s international and national position in research on major depressive disorders in general and on the pathophysiology and pharmacology of major depression in particular. The position will be combined with 40% employment as specialist trained physician in psychiatry at Norra Stockholms Psykiatri, SLSO.

Your mission

CPF has been conducting successful research in psychiatric diseases such as anxiety disorders, mood disorders and addiction for several years. In the area of research within depression the focus is to continue to build upon the translational research platform; for example combining brain imaging, clinical treatment trials and epidemiological data to better understand the etiology of depression and bringing effective treatments forward to the clinics.

You will mainly work with research and education within the pathophysiology and pharmacology of mood disorders, with a main focus on depressive disorder. The work will include the candidate’s own development and application of studies on the molecular underpinning of and pharmacological treatment through studies of patients with depression. This area of work will also include leading the development in this area of research using multiple imaging modalities at KI. The position has focus on research, and you are expected to conduct research at an internationally high level and lead a strong research group in the field. The work also includes that you contribute to and is actively involved in teaching in graduate and undergraduate education.

Eligibility requirements

To be eligible for an employment as Professor with focus on research the applicant must have demonstrated good pedagogical expertise, excellent scientific expertise and clinical expertise (See the instructions regarding the Appointment Procedure for Teachers at Karolinska Institutet).

Having received research grants in competition as principal applicant, within the area of research of depression is also a requirement.

The position will be combined with a position as a specialist trained physician in psychiatry at SLSO and therefore the candidate must be a MD with specialist competence in psychiatry, or corresponding competence, as well as fulfill the National Board of Health and Welfare's requirements for practicing medicine in Sweden.

Since the position includes clinical work, the successful applicant must, besides English, demonstrate proficiency in Swedish, Norwegian or Danish (C1 level according to the common European reference scale (CERS).

The applicant shall also have completed 10 weeks of courses on teaching in higher education (or have equivalent competence), as indicated in the recommendations of the Association of Swedish Higher Education Institution. If the person appointed for the position is lacking such education at the time of the employment, the appointee must undergo such education during the first two years of employment.

Assessment criteria

The Professorship has a focus on research. The assessment will weight qualifications as follows: scientific expertise (3), pedagogical expertise (2), leadership, development and collaboration expertise (2) and clinical expertise (2).

For employment as Professor at Karolinska Institutet, the eligibility requirements and assessment criteria stated in the Instructions regarding the Appointment Procedure are applied in relation to established profile of employment.

In order to facilitate research in a clinical environment on patients with on-going episodes of depression, it is particularly meritorious if you have:

• Conducted and published, in recent years, research which is internationally competitive and of high quality in the field of depression and with a focus on brain imaging and novel pharmacological treatment trials.
• Expertise in using brain imaging, in particular positron emission tomography and with a focus on major depressive disorder as a diagnostic area.
• Clinical experience of the patient group in questions and good understanding of the national and regional treatment guidelines for depressive disorders in Sweden.
• Experience in research related to development and evaluation of novel medications the field of depression e.g., ketamine or psychedelics
• Experience in clinical intervention research, including pharmacological trials and non-pharmacological trials (e.g., CBT, ECT) in the research area of depression.
• Experience in pharmaco-epidemiological research in the area of depression.

Education in, and experience from, academic and clinical leadership is also meritorious.  

Good pedagogical experience from various forms of teaching at undergraduate, advanced level and postgraduate level as well as experience of individual supervision of degree projects, doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows is an advantage. Completed supervision of doctoral students as main supervisor in psychiatry is considered a specific merit.

After an overall assessment of the expertise and merits of the applicants in relation to the subject area, Karolinska Institutet will determine which of them has the best potential to contribute to a positive development of the activities at KI.

What do we offer?

A creative and inspiring environment with wide-ranging expertise and interests. Karolinska Institutet is one of the world's leading medical universities. Here, we conduct successful medical research and hold the largest range of medical education in Sweden. At KI, you get to meet researchers working with a wide range of specialisms and methods, giving you ample opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience with the various scientific fields within medicine and health. It is the crossover collaborations, which have pushed KI to where it is today, at the forefront of global research. Several of the people you meet in healthcare are educated at KI. A close relationship with the health care providers is important for creating groundbreaking top quality education and research. Karolinska Institutet is also a state university, which entitles you to several benefits through our collective agreement. 

Location: Solna

Department of Clinical Neuroscience | Karolinska Institutet

Department of Clinical Neuroscience | Karolinska Institutet

Application

Your application must contain the following documents in English: a cover letter as well as a resumé and a qualifications portfolio including a description of your research plan, both presented in accordance with Karolinska Institutet’s template (http://ki.se/qualificationsportfolio). You may change or add to your application at any time up to and including the application deadline date. After the deadline, the process closes, and no amendment or addition can be made to your application.

The applications will be reviewed by external reviewers, most often both national and international. For that reason, all the submitted documents should be written in English.

The clinical employment at SLSO requires specialist certificate in psychiatry to be attached to the application. The level of clinical employment (Senior Consultant, Senior Registrar or Specialist Trained Physician) is determined by SLSO before the decision of employment is made.

The application is to be submitted through the Varbi recruitment system.

We look forward to receiving your application!

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