Debs Teale is the College of Medicine’s new Patient Ambassador.  Debs is an advocate of creativity in health following her own remarkable journey.  She has gone from being heavily medicated, bedbound with her daughters as her carers to an inspirational speaker, winning awards and changing and transforming the way mental health and its services are seen.  Having being in the mental health system for most of her life it took an art class to totally transform her life.  She now advocates creativity as an additional or complementary service to improve wellbeing and offering hope and aspiration, where sometimes people felt there was none.

Debs has completed an MSc in mental health recovery and social Inclusion, and believes recovery should be a part of everyone’s care and wellbeing package.  She is a Trustee for The National Centre for Creative Health and also on the steering committee of the Social Prescribing Network.

Debs often does talks on her journey and this has taken her to the NHS Expo and as far as the WHO in Helsinki.  She has a passion to promote everyone having a voice and a choice in their own care, something she felt lacked in her own journey.  Debs believes everyone has something to bring to the table, even if it is just themselves.