Adam Polnay

Dr Adam Polnay is a consultant psychiatrist in medical psychotherapy and a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. Adam works at The State Hospital (Carstairs), Scotland’s high secure forensic hospital, and is the clinical lead for the NHS Lothian Psychotherapy Department, based in Edinburgh. Both roles provide a psychodynamic clinical service, teaching and training in psychodynamic therapy and its applications, and psychodynamic reflective practice groups and consultation.

Adam graduated in undergraduate medicine and biological anthropology from the University of Cambridge. He worked at the Murdoch Research Institute in Melbourne, Australia, in clinical genetics and community pediatrics, before completing medical training at the University of Edinburgh. He trained in psychiatry and medical psychotherapy in the South-East Scotland deanery.

Adam is an honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer with Edinburgh University and leads the psychodynamic training for psychiatric doctors in South-East Scotland. He is the main author of new textbook, The Cambridge Guide to Psychodynamic Psychotherapy (2023), published by Cambridge University Press.

Adam is interested in psychotherapy research, in particular about psychodynamic Reflective Practice Groups and working with clinical teams. University of Edinburgh webpage: https://www.research.ed.ac.uk/en/persons/adam-polnay

Adam's blog piece, 'The tone that makes the music: Psychodynamics of Listening with intent', provides a short introduction to the Cambridge Guide to Psychodynamic Psychotherapy: https://www.cambridgeblog.org/2023/06/the-tone-that-makes-the-music-psychodynamics-of-listening-with-intent/