Abstract
The article examines the current state of mental healthcare systems in countries of Eastern Europe and derives implications for future research and service development. Analysis of available statistics from the World Health Organization's Mental Health Atlas suggests the need for better-quality data collection. Nonetheless, there appear to be insufficient resources allocated to mental health, lack of involvement of service users in policy-making and, to a large extent, systems continue to rely on mental hospitals. Based on the data presented, a set of directions for future reforms was drafted.
Highlights
The recent fast development of the global mental health movement has increased the attention given to low- and middle-income countries
Eastern Europe has been somewhat overlooked by mental health research and practical initiatives (Forsman et al, 2014)
This is despite the burden of mental and behavioural disorders in the region being one of the highest in the world according to the Global Burden of Disease Study (Lozano et al, 2012)
Summary
The recent fast development of the global mental health movement has increased the attention given to low- and middle-income countries. Eastern Europe has been somewhat overlooked by mental health research and practical initiatives (Forsman et al, 2014). This is despite the burden of mental and behavioural disorders in the region being one of the highest in the world according to the Global Burden of Disease Study (Lozano et al, 2012). After the collapse of communism 25 years ago, the countries diverged, pursuing their own paths to development, as well as with respect to the reorganisation and modernisation of their mental healthcare systems. Many positive changes have been achieved but many challenges remain (Füredi et al, 2006; van Voren et al, 2007; Semrau et al, 2011; Dlouhy, 2014)
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