DR. KRISTINE ABERCROMBIE

Dr Abercrombie's Curriculum vitae

August 2012  – Present.

Let's Talk Online Psychology Service

Clinical Psychologist/Director

Dr. Kristine Abercrombie founded Let's Talk Psychology Service with the endeavour of expanding the availability of psychological care to the people of Northern Ireland, on both an individual and community level. Due to a combination of personal and professional experiences, Kristine has specialised her service to provide online and telephone psychological therapy and clinical supervision, with the aim of reaching out to people who may otherwise find it difficult to access such services.

Kristine has particular expertise working with adolescents, adults and older adults. She provides psychological therapy to people experiencing a range of mental health problems, such as: anxiety, trauma, depression, interpersonal problems and relationship difficulties. Kristine delivers a variety of psychological therapies such as: Schema Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Compassion Focused Therapy. Kristine adapts her approach to meet the individual needs of her clients with client choice being central to inform decisions. Kristine also provides supervision and consultation to counsellors, mental health professionals and organisations.

June 2010 – July 2011 
Leeds Partnership NHS Foundation Trust 
Clinical Psychologist (Adult Mental Health- Outpatient)

Kristine’s primary role involved providing outpatient psychological therapy to individuals referred to her department, following a national and departmental move towards further reducing waiting times for clients. She specialised in Cognitive Analytic Therapy, integrating additional psychological theories and therapies as required to meet the individual needs of her clients. Kristine received supervision from a Clinical Psychologist trained in Cognitive Analytic Therapy, greatly advancing and consolidating her skills in this area. 
 

January 2005 – October 2005 
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust 
Assistant Psychologist (Neuropsychology - Inpatient/Outpatient)
Kristine completed neuropsychological assessments with individuals experiencing a range of neurological and psychological difficulties, interpreting such assessments and writing reports to provide to other members of her team. She was particularly involved in the Epilepsy Clinic and the pre and post-operative care of individuals receiving Epilepsy surgery. Kristine assisted her supervisor with research in this area resulting in publication. She provided psychological therapy to individuals and their families struggling to come to terms with their health conditions. Kristine also worked with clients where no medical explanation had yet been found for their symptoms, and the potential psychological element to their physical presentation was being considered. 
 

January 2004 – January 2005 
Barnsley NHS Trust
Assistant Psychologist (Learning Disabilities – Outpatient Department)
Kristine’s roles involved: Diagnosing intellectual disabilities through the use of systemic interviews, neuropsychological assessment, and assessment of social functioning; Providing consultation and psychological support to families and carers; Delivering psychological therapies to clients experiencing mental health difficulties; Teaching staff the principles and implementation of Intensive Interaction; Co-facilitating Psycho-educational Relationship and Sexual Awareness groups for couples; and Supporting ongoing audit, service evaluation and service development.
 

June 2003 – January 2004 
The Hesley Group
Assistant Psychologist (Learning Disabilities – Child/Adolescent – Residential School for Young People with Intellectual Disabilities, Autism and Challenging Behaviour)
Kristine completed comprehensive assessments of children and adolescent’s psychological difficulties and challenging behaviours as required. This was primarily achieved through functional analysis, guided by the Lead Clinical Psychologists specialism in a behavioural model. Functional analysis was completed through interviewing care staff and teachers, direct observation, psychometric assessment and behavioural monitoring by staff. Behavioural plans were developed, implemented, revised, reformulated when necessary, and constantly evaluated, ensuring effective collaboration with staff at all times. Kristine provided teaching to staff regarding behavioural theory and models, in application to working with young people with intellectual disabilities and autism.
 

Education
 

January 2015  – Present 
Online Therapy Institute
Certified Cyber Facilitator
Specialising in Online Therapy and Clinical Supervision

September 2005 – March 2010
Leeds University
Doctorate in Clinical Psychology
Placements completed: 
Child and Adolescent Mental Health; Older Adults; Learning Disabilities; and Adult Mental Health. 
Specialist area - Adult Mental Health
Thesis: 
The Role of Ambivalence and Cognitive Dissonance in Motivational Interviewing for Alcohol Problems
 

September 1998 – June 2001
John Moores University, Liverpool
BSc (Hon.) Applied Psychology 
Award -2.1.
 

Professional Affiliations
Chartered Member of the British Psychological Society
Member of the Division of Clinical Psychology
Practitioner Psychologist Registered with the Health and Care Professional Council