The RCPsych Article of the Month for September is from BJPsych Open and is entitled the ‘Emerald Series’.

In its current edition, BJPsych Open publishes a major series of eight papers from the Emerald Programme on strengthening mental health systems in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The EMERALD (Emerging mental health systems in low- and middle-income countries) programme was funded for 5 years by the European Commission, led by Professor Sir Graham Thornicroft at the Centre for Global Mental Health at King’s College London.

The research and development programme aimed to support the improvement of mental health care in: Ethiopia, India, Nepal, Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda. At its core, EMERALD focused upon:

• building capacity by supporting 10 PhD students and developing three Master level modules and three short courses for researchers, policy makers, service users and caregivers (a total of 24 short courses involving 527 participants across all sites);
•  and generating evidence to enhance health system strengthening in the specific and cultural contexts of all six partner countries by developing a sustainable financing framework, integrating mental health into primary and community healthcare, and designing new mental health system indicators with guidance on how to implement them.

A frequent problem in LMICs is identifying key barriers in health systems to scale up mental health services. This EMERALD series includes a paper on how to translate scientific knowledge into policy making and the impact that has in the provision of services and treatment of people who experience mental ill health.

The EMERALD programme serves as a valuable source of information for governments, health professionals, service users and family members and researchers. EMERALD findings which are summarised in this series of papers provide a set of recommendations and practical pointers for mental health system strengthening in LMICs that are applicable to other countries with similar socio-economic and political environments. All the short courses, MSc modules, the eight BJPsych Open papers and other EMERALD materials are openly available online for anyone who wishes to keep on building for a better future.

Since the inclusion of mental health in the UN 2015 Sustainable Development Goals, governments and intergovernmental organisations began to take bold actions to reduce the treatment gap for mental disorders and tackle cross-societal issues. The Emerald Programme now offers more detailed support and guidance on how best to strengthen mental health systems in low income settings.

Contact: graham.thornicroft@kcl.ac.uk
Website: https://www.centreforglobalmentalhealth.org/emerald-emerging-mental-health-systems-in-low-and-middle-income-countries

Click here to view all articles in the Emerald Series

Why I chose this article:

“This month it is not possible to simply choose “an article of the month” for BJPsych Open; in fact that term is a misnomer in the face of the recently published Emerald Series. This 8 paper series is an excellent summary addressing the scope and significance of the Emerald Project. The efforts by this multinational team cannot be overstated and their work will have long-term impact on lower- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Academic productivity has literally flowed from the Emerald Project (50 papers to date). As EIC, it gives me much pleasure to honor this series as part of the BJPsych Open Global Mental Health initiative.”

Professor Kenneth Kaufman, Editor-in-Chief, BJPsych Open

RCPsych Article of the Month
Each month a paper is selected by one of the Editors of the five RCPsych Journals (The British Journal of Psychiatry (BJPsych), BJPsych Open, BJPsych Advances, BJPsych Bulletin and BJPsych International) View the full collection here.

Find out more about the RCPsych Publications by visiting the RCPsych Hub!