Mental disorders are a leading cause of chronic disease and disability in the EU.

Supporting Member States in addressing depression and suicide (including under use of eHealth), replacing institutional by community-based,socially-inclusive treatment and care models (including through the use of EU-Structural Funds), strengthening promotion and prevention as core mission of mental health systems are key objectives of EU-mental health policy. Increasing the mental health literacy of citizens and empowering patients are further priorities.

Psychiatry plays a key role: where necessary, it needs to strengthen patient-centred treatment models and their practice in the community, engage more in multisectorial cooperation for early interventions, promote social inclusion of people with mental health problems, support other sectors (workplaces, schools, local communities), strengthen ties with other medical disciplines to improve their training on mental health and better treatment of co-morbidity of physical and mental disorders.

In 2008, the European Commission launched the European Pact for Mental Health and Well-being. Ministers of Health adopted Council Conclusions in 2011. A Joint Action on Mental Health and Well-being co-financed from the EU-Health Programme was launched early 2013, involving more than 20 Member States. The Joint Action will review the scientific evidence and country situations, deliver country-specific policy recommendations and develop a common framework for action on mental health and well-being.

Mental health is embedded in the context of EU-health policy on chronic disease.

Good practices in policy and stakeholder action are collected and disseminated through the database EU Compass for Action on Mental Health and Well-being (http://ec.europa.eu/health/mental_health/eu_compass/index_en.htm).