Prof Michael Kaess is a Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at the University of Bern, where he is also the Director of the University Hospital of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy. In addition, he heads a research section at the Center for Psychosocial Medicine at Heidelberg University in Germany. Prof Kaess is an internationally renowned researcher in the field of adolescent risk-taking and self-harm behaviour, as well as in early detection and intervention in potentially underlying mental disorders such as borderline personality disorders and affective disorders.