Since 2016, Chile´s Ministry of Health has undertaken the task of strengthening the competencies of primary health care (PHC) teams to address mental health, neurological and substance use problems, as an effort to advance towards the inclusion of mental health at the non-specialized level.
Using a cascade training methodology, almost 100 persons have been trained at the national level. They play different roles in health networks, such as network managers, community mental health center specialists, or leading professionals in primary care.
These trainers, distributed in all regions of the country, have managed to train 2054 PHC team members in the WHO Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) model and in the use of the mhGAP Intervention Guide (mhGAP-IG) since 2016. The mhGAP-IG modules already implemented are those on developmental and behavioral disorders in childhood and adolescence, dementia, psychosis, depression and self-harm/suicide.
This effort to enhance competencies has been complemented with the elaboration of a document, Mental Health in Primary Health Care: Guidelines for health teams. The Chilean Ministry of Health is thus advancing towards overcoming mental health gaps. It has increased the relevance of mental health in the comprehensive care approach, with the integration of families and the community, generating guidelines so that mental health actions are extended to the entire PHC team, territorially organized by sectors.
The incorporation of the mhGAP strategy and Guide has strengthened opportunities to increase the coverage and resolution of mental health, neurological and substance use problems in PHC and has importantly contributed to the development of capacities for the management of these problems in primary care emergency services, hospital emergency units, and by teams that are part of intersectoral and community networks.
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