History of the CADE Clinic
The CADE Clinic takes its name from John Cade – the psychiatrist that arguably has made the biggest contribution to Australian psychiatry with his insights into the effects of lithium in manic depressive illness. His research in the late 1940’s ushered in renewed interest in the effects of lithium which has been a corner stone for managing bipolar disorder (formally known as manic depressive illness).
Having sought permission from his son, Jack Cade (an intensivist in Melbourne) the acronym serves to capture the purpose of the clinic, namely Clinical Assessment Diagnosis and Evaluation.
The CADE Clinic at Royal North Shore Hospital first began in 2007 in the older part of the hospital, adjacent to the Vanderfield Building and the Cummings Unit. It is a tertiary service that accepts referrals from General Practitioners and Psychiatrists state-wide, and provides detailed evaluations of patients with complex mood disorders. It is a public service provided under the auspices of NSW Health and the University of Sydney.
The Clinic is run by Professor Malhi – the lead clinician and has additional clinical input from psychiatrists and psychologists. It is a multidisciplinary clinic that also provides an environment for teaching and research and therefore, from time to time, researchers, registrars in training and medical students witness the assessments and take part in formulatory discussions.