Public mental health: the time is ripe for translation of evidence into practice

Abstract

Public mental health deals with mental health promotion, prevention of mental disorders and suicide, reducing mental health inequalities, and governance and organization of mental health service provision. The full impact of mental health is largely unrecognized within the public health sphere, despite the increasing burden of disease attributable to mental and behavioral disorders. Modern public mental health policies aim at improving psychosocial health by addressing determinants of mental health in all public policy areas. Stigmatization of mental disorders is a widespread phenomenon that constitutes a barrier for help‐seeking and for the development of health care services, and is thus a core issue in public mental health actions. Lately, there has been heightened interest in the promotion of positive mental health and wellbeing. Effective programmes have been developed for promoting mental health in everyday settings such as families, schools and workplaces. New evidence indicates that many mental disorders and suicides are preventable by public mental health interventions. Available evidence favours the population approach over high‐risk approaches. Public mental health emphasizes the role of primary care in the provision of mental health services to the population. The convincing evidence base for population‐based mental health interventions asks for actions for putting evidence into practice.

Developmental assistance for child and adolescent mental health in low– and middle–income countries (2007–2014): Annual trends and allocation by sector, project type, donors and recipients

“…A public health approach involving research, prevention, promotion, capacity building and psychosocial support is strongly recommended for mental health, however substance use was the only sector in which there was investment in all project types [29,30]. Autism, as a single disorder, received almost 5% of total DAMH-CA, and encouragingly almost half of this aimed to increase capacity through training professional and lay workers, establishing specialised institutions and services, and supporting parents to respond to their children' s needs.…”

Protecting youth mental health, protecting our future

“…Taken together, the results of this study underscore the importance of comprehensive and multi-modal assessment, monitoring, prevention, and treatment approaches that target a broad range of risk and protective factors for suicidal ideation 10 . Protecting youth mental health, protecting our future Youth mental health disorders cause immense disease burden and high mortality.…”

Global Mental Health: What is Your Role in This Movement?

“…Meanwhile, in order to achieve improvements in public mental health, societies must tackle: damaging childhood environments, low socio-economic status, poor education, unemployment, poverty, social isolation, exclusion, inequalities and experiences of violence. 4 Mental health must concern itself not only with mental illness, but also with health and well-being. Within Europe, significant health gains have been seen in those populations that have experienced improvements in the environment where people are born, grow, live and work.…”