A Call to Action: Mental Health Organisations Join Forces
Wednesday, 04 October 2006 11:40
On World Mental Health Day, commemorated on October 10th every year since 1992, mental health organisations from around the world have joined forces in a call to action in support of the World Federation for Mental Health, who launch this year's theme 'Building Awareness-Reducing Risk: mental Illness and Suicide today'.
Call to Action:
The World Federation for Mental Health hopes that the selection of this theme for World Mental Health Day 2006 will help create the necessary public awareness and political will to motivate organizations and governments around the world to address the unmet needs of people with mental illnesses and at risk for suicide, and that these efforts will result in wider public understanding, enhanced intervention and treatment services, and enlightened public policies.
Tackling the problem of suicide amongst people with mental illnesses requires both health care based and public health initiatives. Health care schemes must strive towards prompt diagnosis of those with mental illnesses, adequate treatment (including careful monitoring of pharmacological treatments at both an individual and population scale and increased access to proven psychotherapeutic interventions) and comprehensive rehabilitation programs.
The mission of World Mental Health Day is to highlight the plight of those people suffering from severe mental illnesses such as depression and schizophrenia, and to raise awareness of the fact that if undiagnosed, untreated or unmanaged, many people with mental illnesses may attempt and complete suicide.
The WHO estimates that 90% of people completing suicide have at least one (often undiagnosed and untreated) mental illness. Over 1 million people die by suicide each year, according to WHO, and non-fatal self- inflicted injuries are estimated to be 20 times greater than completed suicides. In particular bipolar disorder suicide rate for bipolar averages at 1% annually, which is some 60 times higher than the international population rate of 0.015% annually.
In many cases, suicide represents a tragic consequence of failing to recognise and treat severe mental illness, said Shona Sturgeon, president of the World Federation for Mental Health. Studies from both developed and developing countries show a high prevalence of mental illness among those who die by suicide.
The European Commission also has recently published a Green Paper on mental illness to highlight the need to improve the mental health of the EU population. The consultation report says that mental ill health affects everyone in the EU either directly or indirectly, and during the course of any one year 18.4 million people in the European Union aged between 18 and 65 are estimated to suffer from major depression. Furthermore, it highlights some 58 000 European Union citizens commit suicide each year, more than the annual deaths from road traffic accidents or HIV/AIDS, and points out that ten times this number attempt suicide. The report also sets out that one in four people in Europe experience at least one significant episode of mental ill health during their lives.
Today, many mental health organisations around the world will join mental health services, education and advocacy groups to conduct public awareness, education and advocacy events that will bring these issues to the attention of the general public, primary healthcare professionals, public health officials and policy makers. Tackling the problem of reducing the risk of suicide among people with mental illnesses, and in the general population, requires increased resolve and political will from health care systems, mental health professionals and government officials. Healthcare services must strive towards prompt diagnosis of those with mental illnesses, and the provision of adequate and appropriate treatments as well as the provision of comprehensive rehabilitation programmes.
For Further information please contact: Preston Garrison Secretary-General & CEO World Federation for Mental Health, Tel: 1-703-313-8680, EXT 203
E-MAIL: pgarrison@wfmh.com
The organisations named below support this call for action:
GAMIAN - Europe
ARETE ONLUS, Italy
MDF: The Bipolar Organisation, UK
ARAP: Association for Reform Psychiatric Association, Italy
Public Initiatives on Psychiatry, Russia