Dr James O’ Mahony is a Lecturer and Programme Director of the MSc/Postgraduate Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy at University College Cork. He is a registered Advanced Nurse Practitioner and an accredited Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist, with additional specialist training in Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT).

Dr O’ Mahony has over 25 years’ experience across clinical practice, senior health service leadership, and academia. His clinical career has spanned roles including CNS in Primary Care Mental Health, Advanced Nurse Practitioner in Psychiatry/Psychotherapy, and senior leadership positions including Assistant Director of Nursing and Area Director of Nursing within Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. He has also held a national leadership role as National Nurse Lead for the National Clinical Programme for Self-Harm and Suicide-Related Ideation, contributing to the development of national policy and service innovation.

His research programme is internationally relevant and policy-engaged, focusing on suicide prevention, crisis care innovation, trauma-informed and rights-based mental health services, and mental health service governance and reform. He has secured over €1.6 million in competitive research funding as Principal Investigator and co-applicant and has produced over 40 research outputs since 2020, including peer-reviewed publications and national policy reports that have directly informed mental health policy and clinical practice. His work has contributed to national initiatives such as the development of the HSE Sexual Safety Framework (2025), advancing safeguarding policy across Irish mental health services.

Dr O’ Mahony’s doctoral research (PhD, Medicine & Health, University College Cork) examined how social discourses shape individuals’ conceptualisations of depression, reflecting his broader interest in the lived and phenomenological experience of mental health difficulties. His current research extends this work through a programme focused on lived-experience research, self-harm and suicide, and mental health service improvement, with particular attention to marginalised populations and service-user perspectives.

He has extensive teaching and academic leadership experience across undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral education in nursing, psychotherapy, and clinical psychology. His teaching is grounded in student-centred, research-informed, and experiential pedagogies, with a strong emphasis on reflective practice and clinical competence. He contributes to the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology and leads curriculum development and accreditation-aligned training in cognitive behavioural psychotherapy.

He holds a range of academic leadership and governance roles, including Chair of the Postgraduate Teaching and Learning Committee, Academic Integrity Officer, and membership of School and College-level committees at University College Cork. He also serves as Associate Editor of the Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, External Examiner at national and international universities, and Ethics Reviewer within university research governance structures.

Dr O’Mahony has made sustained contributions to national research, policy, and service development through membership of multiple high-level advisory and steering groups. He served as an Advisory Steering Group member for the National Clinical Programme for Self-Harm and Suicide-Related Ideation (2016–2021), contributing to national service development and implementation. He was also a member of the Health Research Board-funded PRISM project (2020–2023), a national mixed-methods study examining the implementation and outcomes of self-harm interventions, and has contributed to Irish Research Council-funded work examining psychosocial determinants of suicidality in older adults. He currently serves on the National Suicide Research Foundation (NSRF) Research Advisory Group and contributes to the development and implementation of a national suicide prevention education module for undergraduate health and social care students. Collectively, these roles demonstrate his recognised expertise and leadership in shaping national research agendas, informing evidence-based policy, and advancing suicide prevention and mental health service innovation. Dr O Mahony was a member of the National Working Group for CBT for Psychosis as part of the National Clinical Programme, Early Intervention in Psychosis. Dr O Mahony was an investigation team member on the Maskey Report (2022). 

Dr O’ Mahony supervises doctoral and Master’s research students across interdisciplinary programmes and has an established track record in research mentorship and capacity building. He currently supervises 5 PhD candidates and has supported numerous postgraduate students to completion and publication.

His research is situated within an international context, with collaborations and dissemination across European and global mental health research networks, contributing to advancing evidence-based mental health service innovation internationally with a focus on suicide; child and adolescent mental health services; and mental health service governance.

Dr James O’Mahony is Principal Investigator on nationally commissioned research examining restrictive practices, including seclusion, restraint, and pharmacological restraint, within mental health services. His work is directly informing national policy, including the forthcoming Mental Health Commission Restrictive Practices Reduction Strategy and the development of the Code of Practice for Pharmacological Restraint in Ireland. He has also led research generating the first national evidence base for sexual safety in mental health, disability, and older adult services, underpinning the HSE Sexual Safety Framework (2025).

He has secured over €1.6 million in competitive research funding as Principal Investigator, Co-Principal Investigator, and Co-Applicant from major national and international funders, including the Health Research Board, European Commission (Erasmus+), Department of Health, Health Service Executive, and Mental Health Commission. His funded research programme focuses on suicide prevention, self-harm, crisis care innovation, and trauma-informed, rights-based mental health services, with a strong emphasis on policy-relevant and applied research.

Dr O’Mahony collaborates extensively with national and international partners across academia, healthcare, and policy, contributing to research that informs service development, workforce innovation, and clinical practice. His research interests include lived-experience and phenomenological research in mental health, child and adolescent mental health services, and cognitive behavioural psychotherapy, with a commitment to translating research into meaningful impact across policy, practice, and education.

Advisory Steering group membership:

2016 – 2021: National Clinical Programme for Self Harm & Suicide Related Ideation.

2020 – August 2023: Dr Eve Griffin National Suicide Research foundation. Health Research Board. PRISM Project (Providing Improved Care for Self-harm: A mixed-methods study of intervention, implementation and economic outcomes from a national clinical programme).

June 2022 – June 2024: Dr Troya, School of Public Health and Epidemiology. Irish Research Council 2-Year Postdoctoral Fellowship on 'Examining individual and psychosocial determinants of self-harm and suicidality in older adults: improving risk assessment and management',

2024 - Present - advisory group for the development and implementation of a Suicide Prevention Module for Undergraduate Health and Social Care Students with National Suicide Research Foundation. (NSRF)

2023 - Present - National Suicide Research Foundation Research Advisory Group

Dr O Mahony has established a coherent and impactful programme of research focused on mental health service innovation, suicide prevention, trauma-informed care, and service governance, underpinned by over 20 years of clinical and national leadership experience. My research is characterised by strong policy relevance, stakeholder engagement, and system-level impact, addressing key priorities in mental health service delivery and reform. Dr O Mahony has secured over €1.6 million in competitive research funding as Principal Investigator, Co-Principal Investigator, and Co-applicant from major national and international funders, including the Health Research Board (HRB), Department of Health, Health Service Executive, Mental Health Commission, and European Commission.

Dr James O’Mahony provides academic leadership in teaching and learning as Programme Director of the MSc/Postgraduate Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapy, where he leads curriculum design, programme delivery, and professional accreditation aligned with the British/Irish Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies. He delivers teaching across undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral programmes in mental health nursing, cognitive behavioural therapy, and clinical psychology, using student-centred, research-informed, and experiential approaches that support the development of clinical competence, critical thinking, and reflective practice.

He coordinates PG6024 Qualitative Research Inquiry, a university-wide interdisciplinary module delivered across the Colleges of Medicine & Health, Business & Law, and Arts, Celtic Studies & Social Sciences, reflecting his commitment to cross-disciplinary education and research-led teaching. He has led innovative teaching and curriculum initiatives that translate research into practice, including the development of Self-Practice/Self-Reflection approaches in CBT training. He has secured competitive funding to support teaching innovation, including SATLE funding (Principal Investigator) for a school-wide initiative on ethical AI use in nursing and midwifery education, strengthening academic integrity and students’ engagement with emerging technologies.

Dr O’Mahony has an established track record in doctoral supervision and research mentorship, supervising PhD students across the Schools of Nursing & Midwifery, Occupational Therapy, and Criminology, in addition to Master’s supervision across interdisciplinary programmes. His teaching is underpinned by a commitment to integrating research, practice, and lived experience, supporting the development of critically engaged and clinically competent mental health professionals.

Currently supervise 5 PhD students  across multiple disciplines (Nursing & Midwifery, Occupational Therapy, Criminology) reflecting the interdisciplinary relevance of my research and pedagogical expertise. Current Students include:

Ms Joy Kelleher School of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy. PhD thesis title: Voice Hearring and Occupation. Role: Lead Supervisor

Ms Meg O Sullivan School of Nursing & Midwifery. PhD thesis title: Transition to self-management of adolescents with food allergies: the role of telehealth. Role: Lead Supervisor

Mr Graham Emerson PhD (Higher Education Professionals). College of Arts, Celtic Studies & Social Sciences. PhD thesis title: The Counselling Communities Understands of Optimal Pedagogical Components of Primary Counselling Training. Role: Co-Supervisor

Ms Pearl Casey School of Nursing & Midwifery. PhD thesis title: Mental Health nurses lived experience of Medication Administration Errors: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis study. Role: Co-Supervisor

Ms Margo Noonan School of Nursing & Midwifery. PhD thesis title: GROW & THRIVE: Developing and testing Guidance and Resources for Optimal Wellbeing & Teens' Sexual Health and Safety Relationship InitiatiVE. Role: Co-Supervisor