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Social psychiatry and public mental health: present situation and future objectives Time for rethinking and renaissance?
Author(s) -
Rutz W.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
acta psychiatrica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.849
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1600-0447
pISSN - 0001-690X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0447.2005.00725.x
Subject(s) - mental health , social psychiatry , public health , the renaissance , psychiatry , middle eastern mental health issues & syndromes , mental illness , psychology , medicine , nursing , history , art history
Objective: To describe the social psychiatric challenges of modern psychiatry in European societies in the light of recent psychiatric research evidence and to show how these challenges could be conceptualized. Method: Reviewing aggregate morbidity and mortality data from the WHO European Health for All Database, and summarizing consultations and fact‐finding missions to many European countries during the authors engagement as WHO Regional Advisor for Mental health from 1998 to 2004. Results: Societal change in Europe is leading to stress and mental ill health for its populations. The consequence is a dramatic increase in burden due to mental illness and stress‐related morbidity and mortality. Conclusion: A rethought and reconceptualized social and societal psychiatry with focus on public mental health must have a renaissance. Innovative efforts are of crucial and imperative importance seeing mental health in the light of recent experience and science as probably the most important public health issue.