Press Release: Europe’s mental health in the spotlight

Commissioner for Health Androulla Vassiliou launcheed the European Pact for Mental Health and Well-Being at the High Level Conference on Mental Health in Brussels on 13 June, 2008. This was the first conference to bring together ministers, experts, patients, health professionals, researchers and high profile personalities and other stakeholders to agree future joint actions to improve mental health in Europe. The Pact is a call for partnership action. It recognises the health, social and economic benefits of good mental health for all and the need to overcome the taboo and stigma still associated with mental illness. An estimated 11% of Europeans experience some form of mental illness each year. Such disorders can lead to suicides, with one person every 9 minutes committing suicide in the EU. To address this problem and to benefit from shared experience, ministers and experts from across Europe pledged to work together and focus on 5 key areas: prevention of suicide and depression; mental health in youth and education; mental heath in workplace settings; mental health in older people; combating stigma and social exclusion.

European Commission: SPEECH/08/322: Together for Mental Health and Well-being http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=SPEECH/08/332&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

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