Meet the team

Dawn Cannon

Director of WIFWU, and Course Director of IMHOL and PIIOS

I am an Associate Professor at Warwick Medical School and my work within perinatal and infant mental health (IMH) supports practitioners to gain the necessary knowledge, skills and behaviours to deliver up to date research informed practice. I created Infant Mental Health Online which offers foundation level training in IMH to all working with infants, children and their families. I lead nationally and internationally on the Parent Infant Interaction Observation Scale (PIIOS), which enables practitioners to identify interactional patterns and the quality of the parent-infant relationship. Currently, I am working on developing PIIOS as an outcome measure.

I have developed the UK Infant Mental Health Competencies Framework and established the policy and procedures for the new specialist Infant Mental Health Recognition Register. I also Co-Lead on the Public Mental Health and Wellbeing Module.

Helena Tuomainen

Deputy Academic Course Director

I am Associate Professor of Youth Mental Health working for the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration West Midlands. I was the scientific research manager of a large European project on youth mental health from 2014-19. I am involved in research linked to improving resilience in primary school pupils and implementing wellbeing/mental health screening in schools. I am Co-Lead on the Public Mental Health Module and my lectures link to nutrition and mental health and the importance of nutrition in the preconception and perinatal periods.

Shamila Manori

Visiting Research Fellow

I am a Visiting Research Fellow at the Division of Health Sciences, Warwick ‎Medical School, United Kingdom. I graduated in medicine (MBBS), followed by ‎Diploma in Child Health, MSc and MD in Community Medicine (Public Health) ‎at the Postgraduate Institute of Medicine, University of Colombo in Sri Lanka. I ‎am an academic at the Department of Community & Family Medicine, Faculty of ‎Medicine, Wayamba University of Sri Lanka. ‎

I completed MSc on mental health among marginalised children and MD thesis ‎on young mental health focusing on resilience. I was awarded a scholarship ‎by the University Grant Commission, Sri Lanka. Currently as a Visiting ‎Research Fellow, I am involved in the systematic reviews and data analysis of ‎studies on young mental health and contributing to the community activities ‎conducted in Warwick Medical School. I am a fellow of the Royal Society for ‎Public Health.‎

My research interests are on adolescent health, young mental health, childhood ‎cancers, antenatal (maternal) health and public health. I have several publications ‎both as presentations and full paper articles. I serve as a peer reviewer for PLOS ‎One Journal.‎

Agne Raneberg

Research Fellow

I am a psychologist specialising in perinatal mental health, with a research focus on ‎maternal emotions and adjustment to ‎motherhood. I am currently working on a research project examining antenatal and postnatal information needs to support health and wellbeing of pregnant women and new mothers.

My previous work examined maternal ambivalence and its links to mothers’ mental ‎health. During my PhD at the University of Warwick, I developed and validated ‎the Maternal Ambivalence Questionnaire, a self-report measure assessing how mothers ‎manage conflicting feelings related to motherhood. I also hold MSc in Clinical ‎Psychology from Vilnius University (Lithuania) and MA in Psychoanalytic Studies from ‎the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust (UK).

The UK PIIOS Teaching Team

Dr M Miele

PIIOS Tutor

I am a consultant perinatal psychiatrist at St Mary’s Hospital and was the Perinatal Clinical Lead from 2016–2021. I have a clinical background in obstetrics and gynaecology, PhD in neuroscience from Oxford University and am trained in adult psychiatry. I wrote the Pre-conception advice: Best Practice Toolkit for Perinatal Mental Health Services and chair the Northwest London division of the London PMH Network (NHS England). I completed my PIIOS training with Dr P. O. Svanberg and my research focuses on the impact of parental mental illness on infant development.

Cindy Davies

PIIOS Tutor

I am a clinical psychologist previously working for Manchester's under 5's Children and Parents Service and now lead for Manchester's Parent Infant Mental Health Services. I have been educated to be a PIIOS tutor by Dr P. O. Svanberg and now teach and supervise PIIOS practitioners. I am also trained in the CARE-Index and as an EM DR therapist and worked alongside colleagues to develop a video-feedback intervention designed to enhance parental sensitivity to infant cues. I have co-designed and delivered psycho-educational antenatal workshops focusing on parent-infant relationships.

Cathy Coombs

PIIOS Tutor

I am a clinical psychologist and the perinatal lead for BSMHFT and work on the MBU, Chamomile Ward, and across the four perinatal mental health teams serving women and their families in Birmingham and Solihull. I trained as a PIIOS Tutor with Dr P. O. Svanberg and support the embedding of PIIOS assessments within the perinatal service. I have worked within the NHS in Birmingham for 30 years and sit on many inter-agency groups.

The Swedish PIIOS Teaching Team

Lina Ljung

PIIOS Tutor

West Gothenburg (Västra Götaland) Sweden

I am a senior manager for specialist Child and Youth Health service and a psychologist in the regional Child Protection Team Västra Gotland, Sweden. I have many years of clinical experience in Sweden and the United Kingdom in perinatal, child and youth development/health and child protection.

Karin Colliander

PIIOS Tutor

West Gothenburg (Västra Götaland) Sweden

I am a psychologist and specialise in child and adolescent psychology. I work for the the Psychologist Service for Parents and Young Children located in Västra Götaland, Sweden. I lead a project on early interventions for children aged 0–5 years. I trained as a PIIOS Tutor with Dr P. O. Svanberg and Dawn Cannon in 2019 and have supervised PIIOS practitioners in Sweden since then.

Mona Bryggman

PIIOS Tutor

West Gothenburg (Västra Götaland) Sweden

I work as a psychologist at Central Child Health Care in Västra Götaland. There I work with education, follow-up and evaluation of child health care as well as implementation of methods and models to develop care for young children and their parents.