Global challenges and ethics in protecting and promoting the interests of psychiatrically ill patients

Opportunities and Challenges of Global Mental Health

“…The limits of evidence derived from studies in high-income countries when applied to low-and middle-income countries must also be recognized. For example, evidence on preventing violence against women and girls is highly skewed toward that from high-income countries [24]. Having an understanding of local culture and language skills, therefore, should be part of any high-income country's initiative for global mental health in low-and middle-income countries, and every effort should be made to partner with local health care systems and providers in studying mental illness and mutually developing interventions that will fit with the local ecology.…”

“…Psychiatric education seems to be rising to the challenge to help build a better and functional global mental health. We need to become routinely sensitive to different cultural perspectives, to unmet global mental health needs, and to barriers to mental health services in specific global settings, including stigma and discrimination [24].…”