About Jonathan Foster: ‘I’m Jonathan, a trainee patent attorney in our Leeds office. I have a background in Physics, Nanotechnology & Biophysics, and am particularly interested in the use of physics in the medical field. Alongside my training, I am also the Welfare Officer to the CIPA Informals, a committee member of the Institute of Physics Early Career Members’ Group, and an advisory board member for the charity Jonathan’s Voice.’
Last year, a new role was created within the Informals – Welfare Officer. The predominant driving force behind creating the role was the charity Jonathan’s Voice – a charity founded in 2017 in memory of Patent Attorney Jonathan McCartney, who tragically took his own life that year.
The aim of the Welfare Officer role is to raise awareness, and reduce the stigma associated with all things mental health.
Over the last six months, we have been working towards creating a pool of resources for all trainee patent attorneys. This can be found in the Welfare and Wellbeing section of the Yellow Sheet blog. In addition, this page contains loads of information on what mental health is and how to get support, as well as various blog articles on subjects such as ‘Exams and Mental Health’, ‘Changing the Focus of Blue Monday’, ‘What is the Yellow Sunflower?’, ‘Self-Injury Awareness’ and more.
We also created the Informals Wellbeing email. If you feel you need to speak to someone, informalswelfare@gmail.com is a dedicated email address that is only accessible by trained Mental Health First Aiders. Any emails will be treated as strictly confidential, unless we believe that there is a serious risk of harm to self or others. More information including how to access various mental health first aiders can be found here.
Next up is the Wellbeing Coffee Club. The Coffee Club is a very informal chance to (virtually) grab a coffee (or other suitable beverage) with other trainees around the UK. Each Coffee Club will have a loose theme, but ultimately, it is about talking to people you wouldn’t normally have the chance to meet. Sign up to receive a calendar invite to the Coffee Club here.
Finally, as part of the Wellbeing series, our first free masterclass is entitled “Taking back control and redefining failure” – more details can be found here. The event is taking place on Tuesday 16th March 2 – 3pm.
That’s it for now! If you are interested in writing any articles surrounding mental health, or would like any more information, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
