13 January 2022
Dear readers,
Happy and healthy 2022! This brand new, little-used year ahead of us is full of potential and here is to hoping that we fill it with good experiences, small victories, and large stretches of happiness - individually and collectively in our societies!
Welcome to the new subscribers and thank you to everyone who has been reading this newsletter for the past year. I’m very happy to continue bringing you the latest news, events, resources, job ads and publications in global mental health also in 2022, and I thank everyone who has got in touch or left a comment to tell me how much they appreciate the newsletter - this keeps me motivated to do my best. Any feedback and suggestions you want to send will reach me at manolova.gergana@gmail.com, and I will be glad to include your materials or news in the next newsletter.
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Yours,
Gergana
News and Notes in Global Mental Health
Here I share interesting pieces of information, announcements and news that have reached me in our field. I will rely on your contributions as well - please share your news or announcements with me.
The news this month is about global mental health surveys seeking your input. Why are they important? Because they are your chance to give your particular, unique, specific perspective and to air your thoughts. Don’t be deceived by the fact that you are filling them alone with the screen - your voice is heard, and it matters.
Contribute to research agenda on youth
Healthy Brains Global Initiative (HBGI), a new initiative to increase financing for brain health research, has commissioned IG Advisors and MQ Mental Health Research (IG/MQ) to help shape recommendations for its initial research agenda on depression and anxiety in youth. As part of that process, a survey has been developed to assess population needs in those conditions and identify research opportunities that would be most impactful. Make your contribution to the initial research priorities and give your perspective, especially if you work with, or have previous experience in working with youth and depression & anxiety in LMICs. The survey is now online on the HBGI website.
Survey on funding for grassroots mental health initiatives
Ember Mental Health are seeking to improve the funding landscape for grassroots mental health initiatives working in diverse contexts - exactly the kind of initiatives they have been supporting so well around the world - by mobilising more funding opportunities, encouraging new funders to get involved in this sphere, and creating more accessible and appropriate funding mechanisms. The first step is gaining a clear understanding of the current landscape and the first-hand experiences of initiatives when securing funding. Your insights will also provide supporting evidence for raising this issue in stakeholder meetings. Take the 10-15 minutes necessary to fill it out here.
Perspectives of people with lived experience on stigma and discrimination
The Lancet Commission on Stigma and Discrimination in Mental Health is asking people with lived experience of mental health conditions - that would be roughly a quarter of the world, if not more - to share their perspectives on stigma and discrimination in a global survey. Co-chaired by the Global Mental Health Peer Network, the commission wants to summarise the current situation around the world and give recommendations. Collecting people’s perspectives is taking place in Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.
Scholarship for studying global mental health
Last month I gave an overview of the existing educational opportunities for global mental health, and the London Master of Science degree based in KCL/LSHTM is one of the most popular. (Disclaimer - it is also the one that I’ve completed, although without scholarship, and I will be happy to talk through my experience with anyone who is interested.) The scholarship for the next academic year, open to nationals of 10 countries in Africa, SE Asia and South America, is now accepting applications until 13 February. Learn more about it here.
Events in Global Mental Health
The event calendar for 2022 is now LIVE at globallyminded.org. Keep in mind that online events - and they are nearly all online - usually are announced shortly before they take place and I publish them on the website with only 2-3 days’ notice. I only publish some spotlights here.
19 January 2022 - How Do Social Contexts, Cultural Ideologies, and Cultural Tools Impact Youth Resilience? by UCL Catalyst Seminar Series in Children and Young People’s Mental Health. The first of four events starts with Dr Joseph Calabrese, a speaker with significant experience in medical and psychological anthropology that I eagerly await to hear. The seminar promises to explore our cultural attitude to youth and young people from the outside, examining our assumptions and unraveling their logical consequences, and will feature the response of a young person. Note the dates for the next seminars as well - 27 January, 9 February and 9 March, and the renowned names on the speaker list.
Jobs in Global Mental Health
The jobs listed here might not be advertised as being in global mental health and the decision for including them is mine alone. Unless otherwise stated, I have found out about them through job sites, social media posts, other newsletters and so on, so I have no more information on them than publicly available and you should refer to those listed in the job ad.
No or minimum experience necessary
Internship, Grand Challenges Canada, Toronto, Canada - by 20 January 2022
Some experience (2-5 years) necessary
Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) Specialist, Haiti
Applied Researcher (Global Health and Development), Founders Pledge, UK/US/Europe
Research Associate, King’s College London, UK - by 16 January
Mental Health Officer, WHO, Nepal (Nepali speakers only) - by 27 January
5+ years of experience necessary
Director of Evidence Generation and Clinical Development, ieso
Senior Officer, United for Global Mental Health, remote - by 13 January
Mental Health Consultant (coordination), WHO, India (Indian nationals only) - by 24 January
MHPSS & Protection Head of Department (Emergency roster), Action contre la Faim
Research Lead, Evidence in Mental Health, Wellcome, UK - by 24 January
Resources in Global Mental Health
A section for various opportunities, databanks, information sources that may prove helpful.
This month, the starter pack - where can you seek like-minded people or organizations in global mental health in order to make your 2022 plans come true?
Global Mental Health Action Network - probably the greatest place to find other organizations engaged in the global mental health field, this is a network with over 1600 members and covering over 110 countries.
Mental Health Innovation Network - a repository of rigorously evaluated innovations in mental health, this is also a place connecting organizations and individuals keen on doing research, implementation or community change.
MHPSS.net - if you are interested in mental health in humanitarian settings and conflict, go straight to the source for professional discussions, technical resources, webinars and trainings and vacancies announcements.
Global Mental Health Peer Network - an organization welcoming people with lived experience from all over the world, the GMHPN also works actively to deliver the voice and perspectives of people with lived experience in research, in advocacy and in public policy.
Kokoro’s list of charities supporting mental health for all - featuring organizations from all continents, this is where you can find a place to volunteer, a place to refer to, a place to partner with or simply to read about their cool work in communities.
Publications in Global Mental Health
The selection of publications ultimately reflects my personal knowledge and preferences, but I have no intended bias. Feel free to send me publications you consider interesting or that you would like to be featured. I try to focus on articles that are free or open access.
Traditional healers’ and biomedical practitioners’ perceptions of collaborative mental healthcare in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review - we generally hear just the one side or the other side of this artificial dichotomy, but this review of qualitative studies examines them together. The advantage is that there is no advocating for a particular approach, but the different possible dynamics that would be in the patients’ interests are presented in a detached and systematic way through the preferences and views expressed by the two groups. Green and Colucci give space to exploring the reasoning behind the popularity of traditional healers and how they are viewed by their biomedical colleagues, delve into potential collaborative setups, and consider the wider sociocultural forces that shape the practice of both. The discussion section of the paper is excellent for anyone looking for a detailed layout on the integration of traditional healing in mental health, particularly those new to the global mental health field or to this topic.
The article was published two years ago, but can hardly have gone out of date given that only 14 eligible studies were found for a very wide time period and considering the pandemic limitations on possible research. Still, I hope we get to read more on the topic soon, and maybe explore traditional healing in high-income countries as well.
A human rights assessment of a large mental hospital in Kenya - this write-up of an assessment carried out under the WHO QualityRights initiative in a Kenyan mental health hospital is an example in the application of standards on human rights in mental health to practice. The framework of the QualityRights toolkit includes structured assessment in five domains which cover compliance with standards derived from the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities articles:
“…(i) theme 1: the right to an adequate standard of living (article 28); (ii) theme 2: the right to enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health (article 25); (iii) theme 3: the right to exercise legal capacity and the right to personal liberty and security of person (articles 12 and 14); legal capacity refers to the right to hold rights and the right to exercise those rights; legal capacity is an inherent and inalienable right; (iv) theme 4: freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and from exploitation, violence and abuse (articles 15 and 16); (v) theme 5: the right to live independently and be included in the community (article 19). […]”
Authors Muhia et al. also give recommendations for proximal actions in each domain for the facility, which receives the lowest score for the last two themes, and for the overall mental health system in Kenya. Apart from the result, it is the straightforward application of the process that carries a lot of interest for the field of global mental health. There is potential to create assessment and certification procedures for mental health facilities around the world, whether public or private, residential or outpatient, treatment or maintenance. Despite potential pitfalls of pressure on assessors, irrelevance of results, or watering down the standards to the “achievable”, similar initiatives exist, such as the Committee for the Prevention of Torture in the European region. This could be a major instrument of the UN CRPD application.
*Cover image courtesy of Pexels.
The Language Corner
This Language Corner relies on interactions with you, the readers, to build an entertaining little multi-way dictionary of global mental health terms. Needless to say, terms don’t always translate equally well and might evoke different emotions in the different languages.
We start this year with an important phrase which has featured a lot in the service user/survivor networks on mental health care: “Nothing about us without us”. This phrase has its origin in 16th century European politics, hence its original rendering in Latin. How it translates depends on the grammar of the language, so if you would like to give the version in another language, please comment below!
Arabic - لا شيء عنا بدوننا
Bulgarian - Нищо за нас да не става без нас. (“Nothing about us should happen without us.”)
French - Rien sur nous sans nous.
Latin - Nihil de nobis, sine nobis.
Russian - Ничего для нас без нас.
Spanish - Nada sobre nosotros sin nosotros.