2026 Winner

Professor Paola Dazzan was selected by the members of the jury as the 2026 winner of the EPA Constance Pascal – Helen Boyle Prize of €10,000 for Outstanding Achievement by a Woman in Working to Improve Mental Health Care in Europe.

Professor Dazzan, MD, PhD, FRCPsych, is a Professor of Neurobiology of Psychosis and Vice Dean for International Affairs at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London (United Kingdom). She is a practising clinician and Consultant Perinatal Psychiatrist in the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. She obtained her medical degree in Italy and then moved to the UK, where she trained as a psychiatrist at the Maudsley Hospital (London), subsequently completing her PhD at the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London.

Her research has contributed to shaping contemporary models of psychosis, demonstrating how brain structure and function are influenced not only by disease mechanisms but also by environmental exposures, social adversity, and individual vulnerability. Through these insights, she has helped steer psychiatry toward a more integrated, biologically informed, and person-centered approach. She has contributed more than 360 publications, which have attracted more than 22,000 citations and has been recognised as a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher every year since 2019.

She has received several prestigious International Awards, including Academic of the Year Award from the Royal College of Psychiatrists, NARSAD Investigator Awards and an Honorary Membership of the American Psychiatric Association in recognition of her contribution to psychiatry. Most recently, she received a Senior Investigator Award from the UK National Institute of Health Research.

Professor Dazzan has been a member of the UK Medical Research Council and the National Institute for Health and Care Research panels, and is an international advisor to the Italian Ministry of University and Research and a member of the European Group for Research in Schizophrenia (EGRIS). She serves in multiple scientific societies and is the current President of the Schizophrenia International Research Society (SIRS) and Editor-in-Chief of the journal Schizophrenia Research.

She has a strong interest in addressing gender inequality and promoting diversity in the academic environment.

The EPA warmly congratulates Prof. Dazzan on this well-deserved distinction, which recognises her exceptional contribution towards better mental health care in Europe.