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Toolkit for the Integration of Mental Health into General Healthcare

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Cross Cutting Component. Sustain Mental Health Services

A key component of success in integration is the sustainability of mental health services through general healthcare, and transition of these services from the emergency to longer-term development phases. Sustainability should be considered throughout the MH integration process, starting at the very start of project planning. Aspects of sustainability are related to government and policy, local partnerships, human resources and training, programming and services, research and monitoring, and financing.

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WHY is this component needed?

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To promote a smooth transition from emergency to long term development, and to ensure continued availability of accessible, and quality mental health care. Funding streams usually differentiate between short and long-term interventions, creating an artificial division between MH integration programming in the emergency context, and those that focus on long-term development goals. Even where government support or collaboration exists, securing commitments from development donors and/or governments after the emergency phase and in the longer term can be challenging. Finding ways to sustain MH services is important to secure continued services and capacity.

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HOW is this component done?

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  • Work in partnership with governmental health authorities, CBOs/NGOs and donors, to develop national, district or region specific mental health programming. This will be informed by the situational analysis/assessment (step 1), coordination/discussion with stakeholders (Cross Cutting Component: Advocate, Coordinate & Network), and in line with existing health systems and strategies.
  • Maximize the use of existing local and regional health care infrastructure and resources, and ensure consistency with local capacities and national strategies.
  • Establish partnerships that can serve to create longer timelines for investment of funds and human capital, thus pooling resources to achieve sustainability. A mixture of support from government, private, academic, faith based, foundation, and NGO funds can effectively support long-term development of human resources and sustainable services.
  • Advocate for mental health components within national health financing systems (e.g. MH services and medications as part of national basic package of health services, or covered by insurance) which can play an important role towards securing long-term funding.
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MINIMUM elements of sustainability

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  • Involve government and local organizations from the start to discuss how capacity of services providers and supportive systems can be strengthened and sustained at the district level.
  • Set up peer level supervision organized between PHC staff for sustained supportive supervision system in absence of local mental health professionals and trainers.
  • Foster continued dialogue with key stakeholders in order to solve issues such as a continued supply of medicine, ongoing supervision, and annual planning for policies and funding.
  • Advocate for inclusion of longer term support and supervision, scale up and handover as part of donor funding.
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COMPREHENSIVE additional elements of sustainability

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  • Design a sustainable capacity building and supervision model as part of mental health PHC integration in close collaboration with the government and key stakeholders (e.g. integrating MH in pre-service training and continued education for health professionals, tasking national MH staff with longer term training and supervision/consultation of PHC providers).
  • Support government and advocate for incorporating mental health into health policy and legislative frameworks, insurance covered health services and implementation plans, that are accompanied by adequate resources.
  • Support the formalization of local or regional agreements that sustain and institutionalize services, even in the face of changing government structure or shifts in political will.
  • Contribute to sustainable long-term improvements in MH systems (e.g. supply of psychotropic medications, processes and forms, HMIS, strengthening referral networks, and annual planning for policies and funding).
  • Include elements of mental health systems sustainability in monitoring and evaluation framework for MH integration activities.
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KEY CONSIDERATIONS

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  • Do plan for sustainability from the very start of the program design (e.g. discussing and considering handover, exit or phase out from the beginning).
  • Do advocate for government involvement, partnership during implementation, and overall buy in, as this is central to sustainability.
  • Do advocate with funders and international agencies for longer integration program timelines to ensure more sustainable outcomes and impacts, and support for transitioning programming from emergency response, to recovery to development.
  • Do attempt to partner and coordinate with national organizations who can support and advocate for continuation of services.
  • Do consider pre-existing human resources and MH service structures to identify expertise and service providers that can be sourced locally so that staff members can be trained to function better in their existing roles.
  • Do explore opportunities to set up a TOT (a cascade of training in which trained and supervised master-trainers teach knowledge, intervention techniques, activities or skills to trainees).
  • Do provide patients and families with essential information in the case that services are handed over to other agencies or affected populations have to move to different locations (e.g. information about diagnosis, treatment plan, medication given, medication instructions).
  • Do not depend on government involvement when there are issues of poor governance or political sensitivity related to the provision of services.
  • Do not solely depend on government involvement or commitment as a standalone strategy for sustaining MH integration services.
  • Do not expect the government or other organizations to take over activities from international organizations when the emergency phase is over without significant planning and coordination from the start of the emergency phase (e.g. areas of human resources and training, programming and services, and financing).
  • Do not create staffing positions with very high pay scales that are not commensurate with local ability to pay long term.
  • Do not make expensive psychotropic medication available that cannot be sustained in the long term but use generic medications in line with the WHO list of essential medicines and national lists.
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RESOURCES

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Category

  • Key Guidance Apply Key Guidance filter
  • Specific Tools & Materials Apply Specific Tools & Materials filter
  • Field Examples and Applications Apply Field Examples and Applications filter
  • Key Publications & Readings Apply Key Publications & Readings filter

Audience

  • Implementing agencies Apply Implementing agencies filter
  • Governments Apply Governments filter
  • Donors Apply Donors filter

Language

  • English Apply English filter
  • French Apply French filter
  • Arabic Apply Arabic filter
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  • Toolkit Homepage
  • Step 1. Assess & Plan for Mental Health Integration.
  • Step 2. Build Capacity of General Healthcare Workers.
  • Step 3. Strengthen Mental Health Services & Systems.
  • Cross cutting component. Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability & Learning.
  • Cross cutting component. Advocate, Coordinate and Network.
  • Cross cutting component. Sustain Mental Health Services.
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  • WHO (2013). Building Back Better: Sustainable Mental Health Care after Emergencies

    Category: Key Guidance

    Audience: Implementing agencies, Governments, Donors

    Use this resource to access examples and lessons learned from countries that build stronger mental health systems after emergencies.

    • PDF icon Access here
    • PDF icon Access the supplementary report
    • File Access the PowerPoint presentation
    • PDF icon Access the executive summary in Arabic
    • PDF icon Access the executive summary in Chinese
    • PDF icon Access the executive summary in English
    • PDF icon Access the executive summary in French
    • PDF icon Access the executive summary in Russian
    • PDF icon Access the executive summary in Spanish
  • WHO (2018) mhGAP Operations Manual

    Category: Key Guidance

    Audience: Implementing agencies, Governments, Donors

    Use the mhGAP Operations Manual for practical, step-by-step guidance for integrating mental and physical health services, with multiple sections that are relevant to the sustainability of mental health activities [See a specific case example of Government collaboration in India to scale up a sustainable financing strategy on page 11].

    • PDF icon Access here
  • IMC (2016) Guidance Note: Disengagement/Exit strategies for the Discontinuation or Handover of Programming

    Category: Specific Tools & Materials

    Audience: Implementing agencies, Governments, Donors

    Access this overview of general and MHPSS considerations in planning for possible disengagement and exit strategies of mental health programming.

    • PDF icon Access here
  • IMC (2017) MHPSS Program Exit Strategy Template

    Category: Specific Tools & Materials

    Audience: Implementing agencies, Governments, Donors

    Use this template for the prioritization of key exit components and associated activities based on the IMC Guidance Note Disengagement/Exit Strategies for the Discontinuation or Handover of Programming. 

    • File Access here
  • Examples & Field Applications

    Category: Field Examples and Applications

    Audience: Implementing agencies, Governments, Donors

    Country examples of “Memorandums of Understanding” and “Letters of Intent” with local governments that delineate responsibilities of government entities and humanitarian actors in relation to a project or program as part of sustainability planning and handover.

    IMC Lebanon 2011 MOU between IMC and Lebanese order of Physicians (CME accreditation for trained PHC doctors in mhGAP) and signed Letter of Intent.

    IMC Haiti MOU between IMC and Ministry of Health

  • Factors Promoting and Inhibiting Sustained Impact of a Mental Health Task-Shifting Program for HIV Providers in Ethiopia

    Category: Key Publications & Readings

    Audience: Implementing agencies, Governments, Donors

    An original research paper that advocates for the promotion of relationships across professional lines as a strategy to help trainees sustain new skills, in order to help interventions, become more feasible and effective; in this case, failure to address key system context issues made use of the skills unsustainable once external supports ended.

    Full reference: Jerene, D., Biru, M., Teklu, A., Rehman, T., Ruff, A., & Wissow,  L. (2017). Factors promoting and inhibiting sustained impact of a mental health task-shifting program for HIV providers in Ethiopia. Global Mental Health, 4.

    • PDF icon Access here
  • Towards Understanding Governance Issues in Integration of Mental Health into Primary Health Care in Uganda

    Category: Key Publications & Readings

    Audience: Implementing agencies, Governments, Donors

    This paper identifies the governance related factors that promote or hinder integration of mental health into PHC in Uganda, where integration of mental health into PHC has been adopted as a key strategy for ensuring mental health service delivery to the general population.

    Full reference: Mugisha, J., Ssebunnya, J., & Kigozi, F. N. (2016). Towards understanding governance issues in integration of mental health into primary health care in Uganda. International journal of mental health systems, 10(1), 25.

    • PDF icon Access here
  • Transitioning Mental Health & Psychosocial Support: From Short-Term Emergency to Sustainable Post-Disaster Development

    Category: Key Publications & Readings

    Audience: Implementing agencies, Governments, Donors

    This paper identifies recommendations across 5 thematic areas, generated from lessons learned through implementing mental health and psychosocial support programs in a range of settings with varying degrees of success in sustainability.

    Full reference: Patel P., Russell J., Allden K., et al (2011). Transitioning Mental Health & Psychosocial Support: From Short-Term Emergency to Sustainable Post-Disaster Development. Humanitarian Action Summit 2011. Prehospital and Disaster Medicine, 26(06), 470–481. 

    • PDF icon Access here
  • Integrating Mental Health into Existing Systems of Care During and After Complex Humanitarian Emergencies: Rethinking the Experience

    Category: Key Publications & Readings

    Audience: Implementing agencies, Governments, Donors

    This paper presents key components for creating lasting and sustainable change in MHPSS programming, including inclusion of MH into PHC from the very start of any intervention.

    Full reference: Pérez-Sales P., Férnandez-Liria A., Baingana F., & Ventevogel P. (2011). Integrating mental health into existing systems of care during and after complex humanitarian emergencies: Rethinking the experience. Intervention, 9(3), 345-357.

    • PDF icon Access here
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This Toolkit is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The content are the responsibility of International Medical Corps and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.

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