Mental health disorders are prevalent in all areas of the world, in every community and across all income levels. An estimated 13% of the total global burden of disease is attributable to mental health disorders, with almost three-quarters of this burden affecting people in the developing world. This makes mental health one of the most pressing challenges facing the global health community. In this month's editorial, the PLoS Medicine Editors, along with guest editors Vikram Patel, Rachel Jenkins, and Crick Lund, announce the launch of a new series on Global Mental Health Practice, and issue a call for case studies that can help broaden our understanding of global mental health interventions in “real-life” contexts. The first two papers in the series, commissioned for our Health in Action section, include an analysis by Simone Honikman and colleagues of the Perinatal Mental Health Project, which delivered mental health care to pregnant women in South Africa in a collaborative, step-wise manner, and a report by Peter Ventevogel and colleagues on their efforts to integrate brief, practice-oriented mental health training into the Afghanistan health care system. The Editors say, “A key motivation for this series is to emphasize the importance of ‘practice-based evidence,’ by placing value on the experiences and impact of interventions in real-world settings as evidence for implementation…The series addresses the need for greater awareness of global mental health in practice, and builds on PLoS Medicine's interest and leadership in global mental health.”
Image Credit: Marcie Casas (Marcie Casas at flickr.com)
Editorial
Putting Evidence into Practice: The PLoS Medicine Series on Global Mental Health Practice
PLOS Medicine: published May 29, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001226
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Does Development Assistance for Health Really Displace Government Health Spending? Reassessing the Evidence
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A New Deal for Global Health R&D? The Recommendations of the Consultative Expert Working Group on Research and Development (CEWG)
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Stepped Care for Maternal Mental Health: A Case Study of the Perinatal Mental Health Project in South Africa
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Improving Access to Mental Health Care and Psychosocial Support within a Fragile Context: A Case Study from Afghanistan
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The Midwives Service Scheme in Nigeria
PLOS Medicine: published May 1, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001211
Policy Forums
A Prescription for Improving Drug Formulary Decision Making
PLOS Medicine: published May 22, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001220
Criminal Justice Reform as HIV and TB Prevention in African Prisons
PLOS Medicine: published May 8, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001215
Guidelines and Guidance
Reporting Recommendations for Tumor Marker Prognostic Studies (REMARK): Explanation and Elaboration
PLOS Medicine: published May 29, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001216
Research Articles
Pregnancy and Infant Outcomes among HIV-Infected Women Taking Long-Term ART with and without Tenofovir in the DART Trial
PLOS Medicine: published May 15, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001217
Six-Year Follow-Up of Impact of Co-proxamol Withdrawal in England and Wales on Prescribing and Deaths: Time-Series Study
PLOS Medicine: published May 8, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001213
Prevalence and Risk of Violence and the Physical, Mental, and Sexual Health Problems Associated with Human Trafficking: Systematic Review
PLOS Medicine: published May 29, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001224
The Effect of Elevated Body Mass Index on Ischemic Heart Disease Risk: Causal Estimates from a Mendelian Randomisation Approach
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Reporting and Methods in Clinical Prediction Research: A Systematic Review
PLOS Medicine: published May 22, 2012 | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001221