The Global Mental Health Section of the Supercourse Introductory session John Encandela, PhD Daniela Fuhr, MSc, DrPH May 2014

Why a Global Mental Health Section? Mental health matters for everyone: – There is no health without mental health, still the awareness of the importance of mental health remains low and it’s often neglected in global health agendas. Burden of mental disorders is very high: – We find these disorders in all age groups and across all countries of the world. Easily accessible resources do not exist for academics, practicioners, students and others interested in the topic: – The Section addresses the need to promote learning and to facilitate access to global mental health information.

Who We Are The Global Mental Health Section of the Supercourse arose from a joint effort of academic institutions that recognized the need and established the Section. These partners are: -University of Pittsburgh, Columbia University, Centre for Global Mental Health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and Kings College London) The Section is produced in partnership with the SHARE and RedeAmericas Collaborative Hubs for International Research on Mental Health, which are funded by the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health. 3

Our Global Mental Health Supercourse logo represents these partnered institutions by displaying three globes aiming to reach out to steer interest in the area of global mental health across the globe. Who We Are

Who is this Course for? The lectures represent a “course” intended for everyone who is interested in and who wants to learn more about Global Mental Health. However, it has been especially designed for:  Researchers and teachers residing in low and middle-income countries who may provide the lecture content to public health students.  Practitioners in low and middle-income countries who may want to use the lecture to increase their knowledge about treatment and prevention of mental disorders.  Public Health students who may want to learn more about the field of Global Mental Health. 5

What to Expect from this Course The course provides an overview about key topics in Global Mental Health, which will be covered in more than 20 lectures and include topics such as “Epidemiology and Impact of Mental Disorders”, “Mental Health and the MDG’s”, “Maternal Mental Health”, “Stigma, Discrimination and Human Rights” or “Scaling-up Services for Mental Disorders” to name a few. Our list of topics may not be exhaustive but we will collect and add more lectures as time goes by. Some lectures are generic and introductory in nature, others will be more specific requiring some previous knowledge in the field. 6

How to Contact Us If you want to contribute to the Global Mental Health Section of the Supercourse site, or if you have any suggestions or comments, please contact us at: 7

A Final Word… Enjoy the Global Mental Health Section!