Who We Are
Community Mental Health Development
Partnerships and projects
In the period 2021-2023, the Section has worked for establishing, in close collaboration with the International Mental Health Collaborating Network, a Voting Member Organization of the WFMH, a worldwide Coalition to respond to the mental health challeneges imposed by the Pandemic.
'Big issues identified by Covid-19 Requiring Fundamental Change in Mental Health Local and Global Action Plan' was the basic document written by a core group of people and submitted to the approval of all the above mentioned organizations, starting from the WFMH and the IMHCN.
Many of these organizations provided contributions ('Supporting Arguments') and reports. A series of online events were organized in 2022-3 (see www.imhcn.org). Members of the WFMH attended the meetings organized by the Section and offered inputs and contributions.
The section - for the WFMH - has then officially joined the WHO Euro Coalition for WP1 (Leadership) and WP6 – Service Development (2021-2022).
Partnerships were established with many organizations worldwide.
These were, among others, the NGO 'The Banyan' (India), for their Balm Academy (dr Mezzina acts as member of the Scientific Board); with Modena (Italy) for the event 'MATT – the mental health week in October (corresponding to the World Mental Health Day); with ENTER; with Federacion Salud Mental Espana, where the Chair has attended a meeting with the participation of her Majesty Letizia, Queen of Spain (May 2023); with the AASM; with the Ministry of social affairs of Slovenia; with the Ministry of Mental Health of Czech Republic; ELFT in London (Barts Academy), 5 September 2023; SLaM in London, June 2022; Feafes Huelva in Spain; AEN in Spain (participation to the national congress in Barcelona, May 2022); Recovery IPSS, Barcelos (in 2020 virtual and in November 2023), with LASD HOST, California, in May 2022; 180Matto, Japan (for 2 webinars in May and September 2023).
The section issued the document 'A Global View', as a concept note for to the WFMH's 75th Anniversary package.
Objectives
-The prospect of closing psychiatric institutions and all implications related to deinstitutionalization (point n. 1) have been promoted through articles, publications, and seminars (full list can be delivered upon request).
Among them:
Among the several webinars and conferences, the Section (dr Mezzina, John Jenkins, Paul Baker and others) organized for the WMHD 2022 ('Make Mental Health and Wellbeing a Global Priority) an event in Trieste, Italy, on 10th October on the proposal of EC & Board Members (Alberto Trimboli, Silvia Raggi, Carlos Fantin), a hybrid event with trio-lingual translation that was attended with more than 700 registered participants across the world.
The Chair has been invited as keynote speaker by the Ministry of Health and the Panamerican Health Organization in Brazilia, for the celebration of the 'Dia de la Lucha Antimanicomial' (17-18 May 2023). The work of the WFMH has been presented.
The event organized by ENTER in Lipica, Slovenia (1 June 2023) on Deinstitutionalization was addressed by a keynote presentation of dr Mezzina and other presentations.
-For points n. 2, 3 and 4, in a view to further develop these webinars and other training intiatives has been proposed in 2023 as a wider collaborative training initiative (prepared for EC and Boadr meeting, 23 March 2023).
The International Learning, Development and Training School 'Transforming Mental Health Services and Practices' is being developed by the Community Mental Health Development section and the IMHCN (incl. John Jenkins, Paul Baker and others) as Voting Member Organization of WFMH with several partners from across the world.
Its purpose is to assist service providers and individual to learn from innovative models of care and effective practices based on the whole life needs of service users. A major part of this School will be to provide webinars, masterclasses and workshops on important and contemporary subjects and themes in transforming mental health services.
The webinars can provide support and knowledge for "training the trainer" to enhance and disseminate what is learnt to a wider group of stakeholders. They are intended to be an introduction to the theme and can be followed by a more detailed and participative workshop.
Training will be available on multiple platforms in English, Italian, Spanish and French currently at low cost.
The VP can submit a Position Paper with clear objectives, aims, methodology for WFMH approval to be followed by a workshop including the network collaboration, WFMH members and all WFMH Section Leads. A first scheme has been sent for circulation also to other international organizations (such as WAPR and MHE) in …
The WFMH would co-produce a series of webinars as part of a programme that it would be agreed together as well as identifying presenters for individual workshops. A preliminary meeting with some of the promoters incl. Ingrid Daniels and Gabby Ibvijaro as identified some of the areas. The list of the webinars proposed by WFMH Board and EC members (e.g., Ingrid Daniels) included the following:
- Transformation in Mental Health – Global Overview (status update), Barriers and Urgent Redress Priorities.
- Regional Mental Health Priorities and Actions Required.
- An Overview of International Human Rights Instruments, Policies, Guidelines and Action Plans in Mental Health.
- An Overview of International Human Rights Instruments, Policies, Guidelines and Action Plans in Mental Health to Facilitate Advocacy Strategies.
- The Investment Call in Mental Health – An Update, Review and Outstanding Actions.
- Mental Health and Psycho-social Support in Emergency Settings – Tools for Intervention.
- Overview of the Role and Function of Global Mental Health NGO's and Structures – A Need for Greater Structured Collaboration.
- Affordable and Implementable Community-based Mental Health Frameworks for LMIC settings.
The preliminary approval by the core group involved at the WFMH was followed by a draft proposing a comprehensive framework to a specific working group, in order to discuss and integrate it with specific themes, economic support, methods and ways of dissemination (sent by email on 11 September 2023 to the Secretary General).
The School would be promoted also by the WHO as a basic global MH course.
This last draft must be finalized.
Point n. 5: To identify and share good practice in Community Mental Health service systems from around the world.
Apart from the experiences presented in the above mentioned webinars and school, we can mention the following:
-Collaboration with the WHO
Dr Mezzina was nominated member of Advisory group for the WHO – as far as the Quality Rights Initiative, the TAG for Covid and Mental Health (2021-22), and the WHO MH Report (2020-2) and attended online the Ankara Conference (October 2022).
In this role, in the name of WFMH, dr Mezzina contributed to the Report at the Athens conference (June 2021), the Ankara conference of the Coalition (October 2022), meetings related to the launch of the WHO Guidance for rights based and person centered services, the WHO Mental Health Report (Transforming Mental Health for All, 2022), and the recent WHO Guidance on Rights based mental health legislations and policies (2023).
-EU Joint Action 'Implemental'
Its WP5 is aimed at the dissemination of community mental health best pratices based on Belgian reform. The Chair has participated as external expert and he also presented on this topic in Cologne and Murcia (June and October 2023). This work is ongoing for 2024.
-Contribution to Global Mental Health Summits
The Section Chair was involved the WFMH at the 3rd Global Summit in Paris, 2021, in the section of Human Rights.
The Chair was then nominated and acted as as coordinator of the Community Mental Health Section the 4th Global Summit on Mental Health in Rome, 13-14 October 2022, where more than 50 countries were represented by delegations, where also members of the WFMH and AASM were introduced and officially attended.
Work to organize in Brazil an International Conference with the University of UNESP and USP, and in initially the State of San Paulo. Its finalization will be in 2024 and will include the WFMH and the Regional VP for Latin America.