World Mental Health Day: Highlighting progress & calling for change
By Emma Scott, Global Mental Health Action Network
As medical advances continue to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, alongside entrenched and serious challenges, from the cost of living crisis to protracted conflicts to climate change; other priorities can be neglected in the face of such large issues.
That is why, World Mental Health Day on 10th October is such an appropriate opportunity to highlight the importance of mental health as an issue; and why this year’s theme, Making Mental Health & Well-Being for All a Global Priority, is so timely.
Entrenched inequalities in access to quality mental health care remain significant barriers to improved outcomes, particularly in lower and middle income countries. Coverage gaps can be as high as 90% in some low income countries. And as a growing body of evidence suggests, of which a study on Universal Health Coverage from United for Global Mental Health is an example, profound and far reaching socio-economic and quality of life costs accompany gaps in care. These costs are compounded by continuing social stigma around the issue, alongside the still serious after-effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
These costs are particularly acute with marginalised communities, and the young. Original research made with the Global Mental Health Action Network, has shown that consistently, youth are underprioritised; with funding for youth mental health services in 90 low income countries comprising at most less than a US cent, and often nothing at all. The picture that develops is an underfunded, and fundamentally reactive mental health system worldwide. A system that allows failures and gaps in mental healthcare to hinder progress on, or even on some level cause, apparently bigger or more urgent global issues. We need change, to break the cycle of despair and stigma.
This year’s World Mental Health Day is about arguing for that change, with the urgency and seriousness the scale of the issue deserves; it involves everything from fighting to change attitudes to giving policymakers frameworks of evidence onto which legislative action can be built, and with it- increased financing secured. World Mental Health Day is an opportunity to highlight the progress made, and be vocal for change. We can all have a role to play.
Emma Scott, Global Mental Health Action Network
We are proud of the progress being made all over the world by the members of the Global Mental Health Action Network and the power of civil society to collaborate and keep on pushing for change. With over 2,145 members from 127 countries, we will continue to unite, adopt and disseminate best practice, influence global moments and decision makers and run programmes, supporting people within communities and changing attitudes and behaviours.
Stay up to date with events marking World Mental Health Day with our WMHD Calendar, and please add your organisation’s events to the calendar as well. We are also eager to invite members and contributors to our community platform, GMHAN CIRCLE. Join one of our working groups, engage with existing member’s work, or post about your own work about how we prioritise making Mental Health & Well-Being a Global Priority for all.
Our next MHForAll session will be on Tuesday 25th October, 2pm-3pm BST, where we will reflect on the successes of this year’s WMHD campaigns and look at how we can continue to build on this momentum. Register your place now.