Working together towards an effective and influential mental health workforce in Europe: Consensus Statement

The delivery of effective, integrated mental health services in any country depends critically on coordinated inputs from a range of health and social care professions. In support of the overall objective of improving multidisciplinary approaches to the promotion and protection of mental health, the WHO Regional Office for Europe has been facilitating interaction, engagement and consensus between representatives of a number of European workforce professional associations, and has convened two face-to-face meetings over the last 18 months. The six associations are: the Council of Occupational Therapists for the European Countries (COTEC); the European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations (EFPA); the European Psychiatric Association (EPA); Horatio: European Psychiatric Nurses; the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW); and the European Region of the World Confederation for Physical Therapy.

A key outcome of this positive interaction is the newly released “Consensus Statement: Working together towards an effective and influential mental health workforce in Europe”, which articulates a series of agreements for closer joint working and collaboration. It is envisaged that these actions will help to better address the urgent and continuing needs of many people with mental health problems in the WHO European Region, as well as contribute to strengthening workforce development and improving intersectoral coordination.

For more information, please contact the professional associations themselves or Dr Dan Chisholm, Programme Manager for Mental Health, WHO Regional Office for Europe (chisholmd@who.int).