Consultant Neuropsychiatrist
MBBS, MRC Psych, CCT Forensic Psychiatry, LLB (Hons), LLM/LPC (Commendation)
Overview
Areas of expertise
Medico-Legal experience
Dr Mehta has been providing expert witness reports in criminal cases since 2007, when he was training in Forensic Psychiatry. He has provided opinions on both criminal and civil matters, as well as capacity related matters. He is registered with APIL and the UK Register of Expert Witnesses. Dr Mehta is happy to travel to conduct home and prison visits. He can usually turnaround reports within 4-6 weeks, sooner if required.
Clinical Practice & Experience
Dr Mehta trained at Lokmanya Tilak Municipal Medical College & General Hospital in India as a House Officer within various medical and surgical specialties. He then moved to Bedfordshire in 2002 where he completed a Clinical Attachment and subsequently a Locum specialist registrar job in general adult psychiatry. Since then, Dr Mehta has held many positions within psychiatry units; he is now the Responsible Clinician for the 12-bedded inpatient service for patients with an acquired brain injury. Dr Mehta regularly undertakes capacity assessments for various decisions, including the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) requirements for patients, admission and treatment needs, placement needs, finances, to name a few. Regionally, Dr Mehta collaborates with the rehabilitation network in managing complex neuropsychiatric needs. He also developed the alcohol related brain injury pathway for inpatient rehabilitation and presented a workshop on management of these patients at National Conferences.
Clinical Interests
Dr Mehta has a broad experience dealing with the assessment and management of patients with organic psychiatric disorders, including acquired brain injury and their consequences, progressive neurological conditions like dementia and Huntington’s disease, Tourette’s syndrome, complex epilepsy, non-epileptic seizures and conversion/functional neurological disorders. He has a specialist interest in sleep disorders and alcohol related brain injury.
Research Interests
Dr Mehta is a member of the editorial board of the British Journal of Forensic Practice and was an Honorary Clinical Research Fellow at the National Confidential Inquiry into suicides and homicides by people with mental disorder between 2007-2009. He also completed a survey into the perceived safety of psychiatrists attending prisons and presented a poster at the Prison Health Research Network Conference in October 2006. In 2014, Dr Mehta was a research mentor for a trainee registered for an MSc in Research. He also presented a poster on the issue of legal outcomes in the defence of "sexsomnia", which won a poster prize at the summer school on sleep disorders and circadian rhythm disorders at University of Oxford organised by SCNI.
Management Experience
Dr Mehta has extensive management and organizational experience; he has been the Lead and a member of countless boards and groups. Namely, between 2019-2020, Dr Mehta was the Interim Lead for Addictions Service within the Mersey Care NHS Trust. He was also the Lead in Neuropsychiatry Service Development between 2016-2020 for the same Trust. Further, between 2012-2016, Dr Mehta was an elected member of the executive committee of the Faculty of Neuropsychiatry at the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
Summary of Publications
Dr Mehta has published research in peer reviewed journals on topics ranging from sudden unexplained death in psychiatric in-patients, to recommendations to the court regarding mentally disordered homicide perpetrators.
Teaching & Training
Dr Mehta has a vast background in presenting lectures and talks regionally and nationally on various subjects, including Visual Hallucinations, Brain Injury Rehabilitation, Alcohol Related Brain Disease and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). He has supervised medical students, physician associates, foundation trainees and specialist trainees, including the training of specialist trainees in Rehabilitation Medicine during their placement. Further, Dr Mehta trains non-Forensic Psychiatry colleagues in Court report writing and giving evidence in court.
Prizes and Awards
Memberships of Professional Bodies & Learned Societies
Royal College of Psychiatrists
British Neuropsychiatry Association
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