A Political Mind Special - Being ill

Being ill

Prof Neil Vickers and Prof Derek Bolton 

Chair and discussant: Phil Stokoe 

Tuesday 28th January 2025
8:15pm - 9.45pm (GMT)

Online via zoom
Recording available for 1 week

Why do we retreat from other people's illnesses & how well do we look after people who are seriously sick?

A serious illness often changes the way others see us. Few, if any, relationships remain the same. The sick become more dependent on partners and family members, while more distant contacts become strained. The carers of the ill are also often isolated. This book focuses on our sense of self when ill and how infirmity plays out in our relationships with others.

Prof Neil Vickers and Prof Derek Bolton offer an original perspective, drawing on neuroscience, psychology and psychoanalysis, as well as memoirs of the ill or their carers, to reveal how a sense of connectedness and group belonging can not only improve care, but make societies more resilient to illness. 

Neil Vickers is Professor of English Literature and the Health Humanities at King’s College London. He has had a career in epidemiology and has published widely on literature and medical subjects. He is the author of Coleridge and the Doctors (2004).

Derek Bolton is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy and Psychopathology at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London. He is the author of several books including What Is Mental Disorder? (2008) and The Biopsychosocial Model of Health and Disease (with Grant Gillett, 2019).

Please note: This lecture will be recorded and available for 1 week to all registered participants.

REFUND POLICY: Tickets are fully refundable until 14 days before the lecture, after which time no refunds will be issued. 

Concession tickets are available, for students, candidates and trainees. Please email outreach@iopa.org.uk if you are unsure if you qualify for a concession ticket.

Views and opinions expressed by speakers are their own and do not represent the views or opinions of the Institute, event organisers or other speakers. We expect delegates to respect the confidentiality of clinical material discussed in our events. The content must not be recorded, conveyed or disseminated in any format and participants must not share access to the event with non-registered participants..