MHE Newsletter N° 2/2014 April-June 2014
MENTAL HEALTH EUROPE
Boulevard Clovis 7, B-1000 Bruxelles Tel: +32 2 280 04 68 Email: info@mhe-sme.org Website: www.mhe-sme.org
Mental Health Europe News and Policy Work
Nigel Henderson is new MHE President At the MHE General Assembly 2014, held in Ghent on the 11th of April, MHE’s President Nace Kovac informed the participants that he has been appointed Director General for the Ministry of Social Affairs in Slovenia. MHE is proud that Mr Kovac, who has been President of MHE since 2009, has been nominated to this important position. However, it implies that he had to step down from his position as President of MHE, whilst keeping a seat as ordinary member of our Board. At its Board meeting following the General Assembly, the Board unanimously elected Board member Nigel Henderson to take over the chairmanship of MHE until new elections will be held in 2015. Nigel Henderson is Chief Executive of Penumbra, one of Scotland’s most innovative mental health organisations. He has over 30 years experience in the mental NEWSLETTER N° 2/2014, Page 1
health field having originally qualified as both a mental health and general nurse. Nigel joined Penumbra in 1991 and became its Chief Executive in 1999. He is also Chair of the Coalition of Care and Support Providers in Scotland (CCPS), Vice Chair of the Health and Social Care Alliance (Scotland) and a board member of the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland.
Editorial Several important developments took place since the last newsletter was issued and for MHE as an organization, the General Assembly which took place in the beautiful city Ghent on April 11 was a particular highlight. MHE’s new President Nigel Henderson was unanimously elected President on that day, thus taking over from Nace Kovac . You will read more about Mr Henderson in this issue. The European Parliament elections took place at the end of May and MHE and our members are actively working to get to know the new MEPs and to raise their awareness on the importance of getting mental health at the core of European policy-making. The MEP coalition on mental health will be relaunched – all MEPs supportive of inclusive mental health policies are welcome to take part of this coalition. Maria Nyman, Director
Let’s socialize
Highlights Nigel Henderson is new MHE President Practice and Understanding in Supported Housing project MHE undertakes research on interlink between mental and physical health MHE gets published in PEN
Practice and Understanding in Supported Housing project As part of the Practice and Understanding in Supported Housing (PUSH) project, in which MHE is a partner, a first workshop took place in Brussels on the 6th of May. Housing with support is becoming increasingly important as persons with various support needs have the right to live in dignity.Housing is also a necessary prerequisite for implementing de-institutionalization in practice, provided it ensures individualized and community-based services. The participants of the workshop were from different/parallel sectors (disability, homelessness, mental health, housing) but it became clear that there is a lot of common ground. The workshop, at which MHE member Dirk Bryssick from Villa Voortman in Ghent, Belgium, made a presentation about Villa Voortman’s services as an example of best practice of integrated housing and support, was the opportunity to get together to work on the practical implementation on the theory that is gaining recognition at the EU level: the right to housing, respecting people with all kind of needs and ensuring support is integrated in this service. Next opportunity for project partners and all interested to discuss this topic will be in Oslo in October at the conference “A home for all”. For more information about this conference, check out the dedicated website.
MHE undertakes research on interlink between mental and physical health During the past couple of months a thesis research was carried out as a joint initiative between MHE and the University of Maastricht concerning the interlink of mentaland physical health (primarily chronic diseases), and how this relationship has been addressed by the projects and joint actions NEWSLETTER N° 2/2014, Page 2
under the second Public Health Programme (2008-2013) of the EU. The research was carried out by Ms Nora Roman. Scientific studies show that there is a substantial bidirectional and highly complex link between long term physical conditions and psychological well-being. The numerous underlying health determinants connecting these two aspects of health include social, cognitive, affective, biological and health behavior factors as well. As the results show, among the priority actions included in the health promotion strand of the work plans between 2008 and 2013 in the Health Programme only one highlighted the importance of this connection between mental- and physical health, but unfortunately none of the financing instruments dealt with it explicitly eventually. Although the number of health determinants and their factors involved in the work plans increased on the whole by the last two years of the programme, the importance and benefits of a holistic approach regarding health that involves both, physical- and mental health at the same is still to be acknowledged by the Health Programmes on the practical side. MHE will work to ensure that this link is more explicitly recognized through the activities supported by the third health programme.
MHE gets published in PEN MHE had an article published in the most recent issue of the Pan European Network government magazine (PEN), in which our Senior Policy Adviser Bob Grove calls on EU Institutions to act now to address the crisis in mental health and wellbeing affecting the whole continent. The recent European elections brings opportunities to change and improve the performance of both the European Parliament and the European Commission in safeguarding the rights and the lives of Europe’s citizens
with mental health problems. Mr Grove argues that there is a need to address the ‘silo’ thinking and working at besets governmental administrations both nationally and at European level. All policies have a mental health dimension and the mental health impact of all policies needs to be assessed right across the DirectoratesGeneral. The full article can be read here. The article received a lot of recognition and a follow-up article will be published in the forthcoming issue of the PEN, we’ll keep you updated!
MHE speaks at the EASPD conference on Planning Inclusive Communities On the 27th and 28th of March, MHE attended a conference that took place in Siegen, Germany, in Planning Inclusive communities: Challenges and Strategies of Local Implementation of the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). Organized by the European Association of Service Providers for persons with disabilities (EASPD), the conference focused on the concepts and practices for implementation of the UNCRPD in municipalities, communities and local entities. Discussions around the development of effective pathways to inclusive communities based on political responsibility, active citizenship, and stakeholder participation took place, in which MHE contributed with presentations in two sessions, by its members Kristijan Grdan and Gabor Petri. “People with psychosocial disabilities will not achieve inclusion in their local communities, no matter how wellplanned services they receive, no matter how much money is poured into the system, until they don’t enjoy full legal capacity, based on Article 12 of the CRPD.” said MHE representative Mr Petri at the conference.
New abortion draft law in Spain involves psychiatrists inappropriately MHE adopted a new position paper in April on misuse of psychiatry as a reaction to the new draft of abortion legislation in Spain. Whilst not taking a position on abortion as such, MHE is concerned to learn that once again the psychiatric profession is being involved totally inappropriately in an ethical debate by which it has no competence. MHE together with the Spanish Association of Mental Health Professionals, MHE member organisation AEN, reaffirm that the role of the psychiatrist is to relieve mental distress and not to act as an arm of the state or in a quasi-judicial role to offer opinions which restrict the ability of citizens to make independent decisions. Psychiatry has been and is misused in Europe and worldwide. As a long standing, independent, international NGO, MHE will continue to stand out against such attempts wherever they occur. The full position paper is downloadable from MHE’s website.
MHE’s Bucharest manifesto presented at the INTAR conference The International NetworkToward Alternatives and Recovery (INTAR) conference took place in Liverpool on 25-27 June 2014. It was an exciting event attended by people from all over the world. INTAR gathers survivors, professionals, family members, and advocated from around the world to work together for new clinical and social practices in response to emotional distress and what is often labeled as psychosis. Based on leading edge research and successful innovations, INTAR believes the prevailing biomedical overreliance on diagnoses, hospitals, and medications has failed NEWSLETTER N° 2/2014, Page 3
to respect the dignity and autonomy of the person in crisis, and that full recovery must be at the center of ethical care. MHE Board member Pino Pini presented the MHE “Bucharest Manifesto” at this occasion, which was highly appreciated by participants. Through our participation to the work of INTAR, MHE has the opportunity to permanently monitor the biomedical approach in terms of reliability and scientific validity, to stimulating international, national and local governments to pass “sunshine” legislation which makes public all payments made by pharmaceutical companies to practising clinicians, other providers of medical treatments and services and to consumer and relative organisations, and to collect and disseminate new methodologies and practices both for comprehension of mental health problems and for evaluation of alternative approaches to the biomedical model.
MHE contributes to Eurofound project on impact of crisis In the wake of the economic and financial crisis of 2007-2008,
many EU governments reduced funding for public healthcare services. The crisis also had a considerable impact on health and healthcare and conditions such as mental ill-health have become more common, in part, as a consequence of growing unemployment and job insecurity. Service providers and governments are faced with the challenge of maintaining or improving access to quality healthcare services in this context of reduced resources and increased demand. Diminished access poses a risk to the EU’s targets of inclusive growth and social investment, as well as to the fundamental right to healthcare. Euro found is currently finalizing the main research report on how access to healthcare has evolved as a result of the crisis. MHE as well as a few members, in particular Réseau Psy in Luxembourg, contributed to this report and MHE also attended the project workshop in Brussels on the 25th of April. The project website, from which the final report will shortly be downloadable, is available here.
EU Institutions and other bodies New UN rapporteur on health is from mental health field The United Nations Human Rights Council has appointed professor Dainius Puras, a Lithuanian psychiatrist and university professor, ex chair of the board of MHE’s Lithuanian member Mental Health Perspective and active human rights defender as the new UN Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. Mr Puras has served as an expert and a consultant for governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations
in 12 countries of Central and Eastern Europe in the fields of mental health policy and services, child and adolescent mental health, deinstitutionalization and development of community based services for children, youth and families at risk. Dr Puras is also a former member and expert of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. MHE congratulates Mr Puras for his nomination and looks forward to a fruitful collaboration.
New WHO report on mental health and adolescents WHO’s “Health for the world’s adolescents” report, published
in May, reveals that depression is the predominant cause of illness and disability for both boys and girls aged 10 to 19 years. The top 3 causes of adolescent deaths globally are road traffic injuries, HIV/AIDS, and suicide. Worldwide, an estimated 1.3 million adolescents died in 2012. Globally, depression is the number 1 cause of illness and disability in this age group, and suicide ranks number 3 among causes of death. Some studies show that half of all people who develop mental disorders have their first symptoms by the age of 14. If adolescents with mental health problems get the care they need, this can prevent deaths and avoid suffering throughout life. The full multimedia online report is available here.
Abolishment of guardianship regimes in Croatia On the 6th of June, the Croatian Parliament abolished plenary guardianship for persons with disabilities, including persons with psychosocial disabilities. This important development was the result of years of advocacy work lead by the MHE member organisation, SHINE. In addition, the Croatian mental health legislation has been fundamentally revised, and NEWSLETTER N° 2/2014, Page 4
among other issues, it now prohibits in absolute terms, substitute-decision, making for ECT and biomedical research. This was also the first time in the Croatian history that the issue of the influence of pharmaceutical industry was discussed within the Croatian Parliament. This resulted in an open and necessary debate on as well transparency as human rights.
France joins the Mad Pride movement On the 14th of June, the very first French Mad Pride took place in Paris, following the example in many other places (Europe, U.S., Canada, South Africa and Ghana, to name a few). It was a successful, festive awareness-raising event, aimed at fighting stigma and promoting inclusion and the end to discrimination of persons with mental health problems in society. It was also the occasion to explain that it is “normal” to be “mad”. Around 800 persons participated in the march, co-organized among other mental health organisations such as MHE members AdvocacyFrance and France-Depression. Claude Deutsch, former MHE President and Chair of the Organising Committee stated to the press, “The objective of this Mad Pride is to call for the dignity
of persons with mental health problems. They suffer enough without being discriminated against and disqualified from society.” The march started from the symbolic Sainte-Anne psychiatric hospital inside Paris and ended at the “Hotel de Ville” Town Hall in the centre of the city where a “Charter for Dignity” was signed by the organisations involved and city officials to defend the rights and dignity of mental health service users and to call for concrete measures to ensure equal citizenship and their full participation in society. The event continued on the square in front of the Town Hall with the Brazilian percussionists who participated in the march, floats in display and other musicians and activists who got their message across to thousands of others there that day. Awareness was also raised among many more as the media responded incredibly well to the event with both print and video articles, often quoting users interviewed and citing their empowerment, in spite of the low budget to promote this 1st Mad Pride edition in France.
Meet MHE’s new members At its General Assembly in April, MHE had the pleasure to welcome several new members. In this newsletter, two new members introduce themselves and their work. Landelijk Platform GGz The Netherlands has numerous active mental health consumer and carer organisations. Twenty of these are united into the single voice of the National Platform Mental Healthcare (Landelijk Platform GGz), a nonprofit association. The Platform represents more than two million Dutch citizens with mental health
problems. Our overall goal is to improve the position of these people. We therefore work in collaboration with politicians,policy makers, health care organisations, insurance companies and national associations of professional and provider organisations.The Platform focuses on improving the mental health care system as a whole (i.e. quality, safety, transparency, legal issues, care integration), improving the support systems for consumers and carers (i.e. financing of selfhelp, peer-support groups, family involvement, and consumer/carer organisations), and promoting appropriate work, payment and education for individuals with mental health conditions. The European Association (EDA)
Depression
EDA is an alliance of organisations, patients, researchers and
healthcare professionals from 19 countries across Europe. Depression is already the most prevalent health problem in many EU Member States. EDA raises awareness and promotes better understanding of the impact of depression on people’s lives, to challenge stigma and discrimination, and to provide a voice for those who experience depression. By coming together in Europe, members of the EDA exchange research, information and best practices; co-ordinate pan-European actions, and extend the reach of their campaigns. We hope that by becoming a member of Mental Health Europe we can extend our work further and support our colleagues in the wider mental health field. Each year EDA organizes European Depression Day to raise awareness of depression across Europe. Over the last 3 years EDA
has focused on depression and work however, our campaign this year will examine the impact on the wider family too. Depression is one of the biggest killers of young people and is so common that we believe it affects every family in Europe in some way. More than 1 in 10 EU citizens suffer from depression at some point in their life and they commonly experience symptoms such as lack of attention, memory loss and difficulty planning and taking decisions. These cognitive symptoms can have a significant impact on quality of life and the ability to function at work, school and in social situations. Our campaign this year will feature a call to action for MEPs and practical resources for people struggling with depression.
Do you wish to share information, make an announcement or contribute to the MHE Newsletter? Do you have thoughts on the content or the layout of our publication? We would love to hear from you! Please send your opinions or contributions to maria.nyman@mhe-sme.org