WHO Mental Health Forum: Our Commitment to Community-Based Mental Health

HealthNet TPO took part in the panel on the session “building back better mental health systems during and after emergencies” at the WHO Mental Health Forum on the 10th and 11th of October. The panel, which included the Inter Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Co-Chair, HealthNet TPO and representatives from the WHO and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), highlighted the importance of a collaborative approach toward improving MHPSS services during and after emergencies, and ensuring sustained attention and investment to this cause. This year, the theme of the forum was “transforming mental health for all”, both in terms of changing attitudes and deepening commitments towards mental health across the world but also revitalizing mental health services and systems. Read the WHO Mental Health Forum 2022 Report here.

Similarly, the Global Mental Health Summit (GMHS) in Rome on the 13th and 14th October, dedicated on the important role of a community-focused approach to MHPSS. HealthNet TPO presented its unique approach to improving access to, and quality of, MHPSS services by bridging emergency programmes of MHPSS with long-term sustainable care that is integrated within the health and community systems. This approach supports and strengthens the local capacity, enhances relevant structures and human resources, and provides all components of MHPSS at community-level care.

As an example, HealthNet TPO’s Health Social Counsellors (HSC) in Afghanistan are key agents within district and community-level care, providing psychosocial counselling and referrals to specialist services. As well as coordinating care, they also lead the process for mentorship and training within health facilities, schools and other community-psychosocial programmes. Similarly, in South Sudan, the Minimum Service Package of MHPSS highlights an opportunity to contribute to a sustainable MHPSS care package, with the integration of projects providing support to survivors of gender-based violence.

Other speakers at the Summit included representatives from the ICRC, DG ECHO, WHO, Dutch Surge Support for MHPSS, Health Ministry of Liberia and Save the Children. The GMHS ended with commitment from many countries for support of MHPSS at country and global level.

HealthNet TPO uses operational research to build models for the integration of MHPSS into health and community systems for fragile settings. With this, the organisation presents a shift towards implementation science with a lesser focus on academic research on MHPSS. This will enable the improvement of integrated, sustained and accessible MHPSS services in fragile settings and conflict-affected countries, reaching more people in need of MHPSS services.