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The World Health Organization (WHO) conceptualizes mental health as a “state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community”. Mental disorders and psychoactive substance-related disorders are highly prevalent throughout the world and are major contributors to morbidity, disability, and premature mortality. However, the resources allocated by countries to tackle this burden are insufficient, are inequitably distributed, and, at times, inefficiently used. Together, this has led to a treatment gap that, in many countries, is more than 70%. The stigma, social exclusion, and discrimination that occur around people with mental disorders compound the situation.

Key facts
  • Mental health disorders increase the risk for other diseases and contribute to unintentional and intentional injury.
  • In the Region, depression continues to be the leading mental health disorder, and is twice as frequent in women as in men. 10% to 15% of women in industrialized countries and 20% to 40% of women in developing countries suffer from depression during pregnancy or the postpartum period.
  • Mental and neurological disorders in the elderly, such as Alzheimer’s disease, other dementias, and depression, contribute significantly to the burden of noncommunicable diseases. In the Americas, the prevalence of dementia in the elderly (aged >60 years) ranges from 6.46% to 8.48%. Projections indicate that the number of people with dementia will double every 20 years.
  • Among adults with severe and moderate affective, anxiety, and substance use disorders, the median treatment gap is 73.5% for the Region of the Americas, 47.2% for North America, and 77.9% for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The treatment gap in LAC is 56.9% for schizophrenia, 73.9% for depression, and 85.1% for alcohol.
  • Median public spending on mental health across the Region is a mere 2.0% of the health budget, and over 60% of this is allocated to psychiatric hospitals.
Fact sheet

Median spending in mental health services stands globally at 2.8% of total government health spending. Low-income countries spend around 0.5% of their health budget in mental health services, and high-income countries, 5.1%. In the Americas, spending ranges from 0.2% in Bolivia to 8.6% reported by Suriname. There is a significant direct linear correlation between national income and Government spending in mental health as a proportion of the total health budget. WHO recommends that health spending allocation should be in proportion to the health burden and that there should be parity between physical and mental aspects of health care. In practical terms, this means that physical and mental health services should be provided in an integrated manner, and that the percentage of spending allocated to mental health services should be proportionate to the percentage of its attributable burden.

PAHO Response

In 2013, the World Health Assembly approved the Comprehensive mental health action plan 2013-2020. The development and establishment of policies and programs for mental health promotion and prevention are a necessary part of regional efforts to improve mental health in the overall population. PAHO’s regional Plan of Action on Mental Health includes developing and implementing programs for promotion and prevention in the context of mental health systems and services. Examples of broad strategies for mental health promotion and prevention of mental illness throughout the life course include information campaigns, promotion of rights, programs for early childhood and life course skills, provision of healthy working conditions, and programs to protect against child abuse and other types of domestic and community violence.

Mental Health is a program within the Department of Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health (NMH), which promotes, coordinates and implements technical cooperation to strengthen national capacities to develop policies, plans, programs, and services, thus contributing to mental well-being, prevent mental disorders, emphasize recovery, and promote persons with mental disorders to exercise their human rights to attain the highest possible level of health and to contribute to the well-being of families and communities.

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High-Level Commission on Mental Health and COVID-19

The Pan American Health Organization has established the High-level Commission on Mental Health and COVID-19 to support the Organization and its Member States in improving and strengthening mental health across the Americas, both during the pandemic and for the future.

access the platform of the commission

THE REPORT: "A NEW AGENDA FOR MENTAL HEALTH IN THE AMERICAS"

 

Ilustración que muestra a personas de diferentes edades haciendo ejercicio, meditando y regando flores

 

"A New Agenda for Mental Health in the Americas" (NAMHA) is a package of priority mental health policy and strategic actions that are crafted for incorporation into countries’ post-pandemic recovery strategies.

 

NAMHA outlines 10 recommendations with corresponding action points and case examples from the Americas that highlight successful models to guide implementation. NAMHA presents evidence-based approaches to address the crisis generated by the COVID-19 pandemic in the short term while laying robust foundations for the longer term to ensure optimal improvements in mental health care in the Region of the Americas.

 

REPORT

 

Executive summaries: ENG, FRA, POR, SPA

 


Mental Health Stigma Reduction Campaign


The Burden of Mental Disorders in the Region of the Americas

The Burden of Mental Disorders in the Region of the Americas, 2018

This report aims to improve the assessment of mental health needs in the Americas by providing an updated and nuanced picture of:

  1. the disability resulting from mental, substance use, and specific neurological disorders, plus self-harm, alone and in combination with premature mortality;
  2. the imbalance between mental health spending and its related disease burden; and
  3. the inadequate allocation of the meager mental health spending by countries of the Region. 

 

 

Country profiles

Acknowledgments: Daniel Vigo and Laura Jones (Mental Health Systems Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia; Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School) were responsible for collecting and analyzing the data and are the lead authors of the reports by country. 

Guidance on community mental health services: promoting person-centred and rights-based approaches

The WHO Guidance on community mental health services: Promoting person-centred and rights-based approaches is a set of publications that provides information and support to all stakeholders who wish to develop or transform their mental health system and services to align with international human rights standards including the  UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

ACCESS THE GUIDE AND THE TECHNICAL MODULES

 

 

Introducing Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) in emergencies (WHO)

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30 year of the Caracas Declaration

The year 2020 marks the thirtieth anniversary of the Declaration of Caracas, which marked an important shift in the mental health care paradigm in the Region of the Americas, towards the decentralization of mental health services to the community and the promotion and protection of human rights of persons with mental health conditions.

 

MORE INFORMATION

 The impact of the Caracas Declaration (1990 - 2020)

The future of mental health - 30 years after the Caracas Declaration

 

Taking care of your mental health in times of a pandemic

 

6 recommendations for dealing with stress during the COVID-19 pandemic

Mental Health during the pandemic (in Spanish)

4 recommendations for coping with stress and mental well-being during isolation or quarantine

Are you a health worker and facing stressful situations due to the COVID-19 pandemic?

 

How can we support the emotional wellbeing of older adults during COVID-19?

How to help children cope with stress during the COVID-19 pandemic?

 

Special initiative for mental health (2019–2023)

In 2018 the WHO Director-General identified mental health for accelerated implementation within WHO’s work. This WHO Special Initiative seeks to ensure universal health coverage involving access to quality and affordable care for mental health conditions in 12 countries to 100 million more people. 

 The initiative will advance policies, advocacy and human rights, and scale-up quality interventions and services for people with mental health conditions, including substance use and neurological disorders.

Publication: Special initiative for mental health (2019–2023)

 Video: Special initiative for mental health: Paraguay 

 

 

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