Promoting Mental Health Internationally

To mark the retirement of Dr Norman Sartorius in 1974 from his post as Director of the Division of Mental Health of the World Health Organization, the editors (all long-standing advisors and collaborators with the WHO programme) have brought together contributions from a mixture of advisors, collaborators and WHO staff members.

The chapters provide descriptions and commentaries on the main aspects of the last 30 years of the WHO programme in mental health, which has constituted a unique and productive era in international collaboration, both in research and exchange of information.

The major topics and issues include the cross-cultural epidemiology and outcome of persons with serious mental illnesses (particularly the schizophrenic syndromes), cross-cultural aspects of problems related to the abuse and control of alcohol and drugs of dependency, the role of psychiatrists in primary care, and the development of a "common language" for psychiatrists and mental health workers (manifest as a progression through ICD-8 and ICD-9 to the family of documents associated with ICD-10). This book should be of particular interest to Consultant and Research Psychiatrists with an interest in international, epidemiology and public health aspects of general psychiatry.

Also the international audience of mental health service administration and employees responsible for mental health along with alcohol and drug dependency services.