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Future-Proofing Mental Health

General Research

UK academics are calling for targets for mental health research in order to meet the healthcare challenges of the next decade. Published today in Journal of Mental Health, researchers set out four overarching goals that will speed up implementation of mental health research and give a clear direction for researchers and funders to focus their efforts when it comes to better understanding the treatment of mental health.

Trees in the shape of two heads, one with green leaves in blue sky and the other with empty branches in grey sky.

The treatment of mental illness currently brings substantial costs to individuals, the NHS, and also to wider society. The need for innovation to promote good mental health has never been greater. In an effort to catalyse this innovation, researchers have set out four ambitious targets:

  1. Halve the number of children and young people experiencing persistent mental health problems
  2. Improve our understanding of the links between physical and mental health, and eliminate the mortality gap
  3. Increase the number of new and improved treatments, interventions and supports for mental health problems
  4. Improve the availability of choices and access to mental health care, treatment and support in hospital and community settings

The number of goals was limited to four in an effort to easily promote cross-sector partnerships, and to track their impacts.

Read the full story on the Department of Psychiatry website

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