Global Mental Health

A call for action now

The World Health Organisation has warned that the global financial crisis is likely to cause increased mental-health problems. The Movement for Global Mental Health aims to address this by improving services for people with mental health conditions worldwide.

Its goal is to implement the scaling-up of treatments for mental health conditions, for the human rights of those affected to be protected, and for more research in low and middle income countries.

One of its leading proponents, psychiatrist Professor Vikram Patel, Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellow and Reader in International Mental Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, explains why mental health deserves an equal footing with Aids, TB, malaria and maternal health on the global health agenda.

For more information visit http://www.globalmentalhealth.org