Nat Barden

Patient & Public Voice Partner & Community Researcher / Social Change Artist

About Me

Nat lives in Romsey, central Cambridge.  She is active in assisting various mental health research projects, working with psychiatrists and researchers to inform them, from her service users perspective.  Nat is deeply passionate about how we can influence and change the way our Genes develop, depending on what and how we eat and our environment.  She is finding her Nutritional Therapy Diploma on Epigentics absolutely fascinating!  Nat would love to see more cohesion and emphasis on the importance of good nutrition being actively used in the NHS and particularly in hospitals.  Nutrition isn't talked about enough by Doctors/GPs or mental health staff.

Nat was recruited by Eastern AHSN as a community researcher to support the Northstowe Healthy communities project.  Nat was recently trained by the King's Fund on patient & public involvement, together with training for the Participatory Appraisal project, which was sponsored by Eastern AHSN.  Nat keeps in touch with the Oliver Zangwill Centre at the Princes of Wales Hospital in Ely, since she had her neuro rehabilitation programme in 2011.  She attends their user group and takes part in the research studies that trainee Clinical Psychologists are undertaking.

Nat contributed a chapter to 'Life After Brain Injury: Survivor Stories', published in 2013, that was the original concept and written by Barbara Wilson OBE and founder of the Oliver Zangwill Centre.

Condition interest or area of knowledge

• Mental Health
• Nutrition
• Brain Injury
• Participatory Appraisal

Where I can help

• Cambridgeshire

Organisations I am involved with: 

• University of Cambridge Research Database Oversight Committee
• Oliver Zangwill Centre
• Eastern Academic Health Science Network Public & Patient Voice Partner
• Various locality community groups