Primary mental health prevention-a public health priority around the world

Abstract

Prevention of mental health disorders should be a Public Health Priority around the World as an estimated thirty percent of the world population will develop some form of mental health disorder in any one year. More importantly, a substantial number of these people receive no treatment. The observed trend shows that Low and middle Income Countries (LMIC) have more number of people out of treatment even with mental health conditions such as schizophrenia, unipolar depression, anxiety, and substance use disorder among others. Empirical evidence is forming a consensus that primary prevention may delay the onset of mental illness. As of today, evidence linking protective factors with risk factors has been established in the development of mental health disorders which could be the focus in primary mental health prevention. Furthermore, both risk and protective factors are known to have genetic, social, economic, and environmental components interacting to make these determinants a complex one. These dynamics between the protective factors and risk factors culminating in a mental health disorder is the target of primary prevention in mental health disorders. The vision for primary prevention in psychiatry is to incorporate the different levels of primary prevention strategy in mental health prevention globally; thus achieving a worldwide impact. This hopefully will be a catalyst to overcome the gross neglect and lack of political will. Programs such as indicated medication use and psychotherapy among high-risk individuals are now available in the industrialized societies and could be adapted with beneficial effects in the LMIC countries.