Dr Geoff Lawrence-Smith

Dr Lawrence-Smith is a consultant at Priory Wellbeing Centre Harley Street and has over 10 years’ experience working full-time for the NHS in general adult community, consultation-liaison, and perinatal psychiatry. He has worked in many NHS mental health trusts across London including the Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel, a national trauma centre. He has spent the last 10 years working for Oxleas NHS and East London Foundation Trusts and since 2020 he has been a visiting consultant for Priory.

In his liaison psychiatry role, Dr Lawrence-Smith provides clinical leadership and day-to-day supervision to his colleagues and collaborates directly with patients in crisis to formulate safe, recovery-focused management plans directly in the emergency department, on acute medical/surgical wards and in outpatient settings. 

For over 4 years, Dr Lawrence-Smith conducted perinatal psychiatry outpatient clinics alongside community midwife colleagues to be as responsive as possible to the needs of women in the perinatal period.

Dr Lawrence-Smith’s community psychiatry role developed his confidence and expertise in multidisciplinary working to facilitate the community care and recovery of patients with complex mental health needs in the context of conditions such as schizophrenia, bipolar affective disorder, depression, personality/attachment disorder and autistic spectrum conditions. 

Over recent years, Dr Lawrence-Smith has developed his expertise in supporting people with treatment resistant mood disorders. Dr Lawrence-Smith offers rTMS treatment for depression at the Priory and is also experienced in the assessment and treatment of ADHD.

Examples of Dr Lawrence-Smith’s patient and colleague feedback include:

• (Dr Lawrence-Smith) showed genuine understanding and kindness, respected my views and we worked together to agree a care plan…. I hope that if I need any further treatment, I would be able to work with him again.
• (Dr Lawrence-Smith) is an excellent doctor who clearly knows what he is doing.
• (Dr Lawrence-Smith) is an exceptionally good medical doctor who is gifted at developing good therapeutic relationships with patients and good working relationships with colleagues.
• Dr Lawrence-Smith is approachable, clinically very knowledgeable and is a colleague whom I have often approached to discuss challenging or clinically complex cases. He is reflective in his practice and a pleasure to work with.

Training

• Dr Lawrence-Smith trained in medicine at University College London, graduating in 2002.
• He also studied psychology with basic medical sciences, attaining an intercalated BSc in 1999.
• Dr Lawrence-Smith trained in (core) psychiatry with the North London training rotation, working in North East London and Camden and Islington NHS Trusts. He completed his higher training at the Maudsley Rotational training scheme and became a member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists in 2006.
• Dr Lawrence-Smith has studied medical education, attaining a postgraduate certificate in academic practice from the Kings institute of Learning and Teaching at Kings College London.

Research interests

Dr Lawrence-Smith has undertaken two research projects in the past five years:

1. Lamotrigine and Borderline Personality Disorder: Investigating Long-Term Effectiveness.
   This research examined whether lamotrigine is a clinically effective and cost-effective treatment for people with borderline personality disorder. The results suggested that treating people with borderline personality disorder with lamotrigine is not a clinically effective or cost-effective use of resources.
2. A Qualitative Exploration of Service Users'/Companions' Experiences of Liaison Psychiatry and Mental Health Crisis in the Emergency Department.
   This project explored the experiences of mental health service users and their companions of the emergency department. Results highlighted that feelings of fear were a common experience and that waiting times/environment were considered a significant problem.

Clinical articles and research papers

1. Collom, Patterson, Lawrence-Smith & Tracy. The unheard voice: a qualitative exploration of companions’ experiences of liaison psychiatry and mental health crises in the emergency department. BJPsych Bulletin (2019), 43(5), pp 204-209.
2. Crawford et al (including G Lawrence-Smith). The Clinical Effectiveness and Cost-Effectiveness of Lamotrigine in Borderline Personality Disorder: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial. Am J Psychiatry (2018), 175(8), pp 756-764
3. Gilberthorpe, Sarfo & Lawrence-Smith. Ticking the boxes: a survey of workplace-based assessments. BJPsych Bulletin (2016), 40, 89-92.
4. Crawford et al (including G Lawrence-Smith). Lamotrigine versus inert placebo in the treatment of borderline personality disorder: Study protocol for a randomised controlled trial and economic evaluation. Trials (2015), 16, 308.
5. Lawrence-Smith G. Embracing autistic traits: Spock’s Vulcan heritage in Star Trek – psychiatry in the movies. British Journal of Psychiatry (2014), 204(4), pp251.
6. Lawrence-Smith G. Psychodermatology. Psychiatry (2009), 8(6), pp 223-227.
7. Treating learned helplessness in hospital: a reacquaintance with self-control (2006). British journal of hospital medicine (2006), 67(3), pp 134-136