Mark van Ommeren

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Job role: 
Head, Mental Health Unit, Department of Mental Health and Substance Use
Affiliation: 
World Health Organization
Member type: 
Policy Maker
Practitioner/Implementer
Researcher
Brief Biography: 

Dr Mark van Ommeren is head of the mental health unit within the WHO Department of Mental Health and Substance Use.

Much of Mark’s work has been inter-agency and focused on: initiating and developing humanitarian policy (ie Sphere standards, IASC guidelines), humanitarian tools (eg assessment tools, psychological first aid (PFA) guide, mhGAP Humanitarian Intervention Guide); evidence-based WHO guidelines (eg on depression and PTSD) ; scalable psychological interventions (eg Problem Management Plus); WHO model Essential Medicines List update, and supporting countries to build back better mental health systems after emergencies. To improve intersectoral collaboration he introduced the now popular term “mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS)” into inter-agency (IASC) humanitarian policy. And more recently he coordinated the writing of WHO's World Mental Health Report: Transforming Mental Health for All.

Born and raised in the Netherlands, Mark lived and worked for five years in Nepal and Fiji before joining WHO. He studied at University of British Columbia (BSc in statistics, 1992; MA in counselling psychology, 1995), and received his doctorate - on impact of torture on refugees in Nepal - from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (2000).

Regions of interest: 
Africa
Middle East
North America
Central America and the Caribbean
South America
Asia
Europe
Oceania
Population: 
Children and adolescents
Adults
Families and carers
Humanitarian and conflict health
Country: 
Switzerland

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My contributions

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Early Adolescent Skills for Emotions (EASE): a psychological intervention for young adolescents and their caregivers

EASE is a group psychological intervention delivered by non-specialist providers to improve the mental health of adolescents.
Region: 
Africa
Middle East
Asia
Population: 
Children and adolescents
Disorder: 
All disorders
6164 reads
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New WHO prevalence estimates of mental disorders in conflict settings

This systematic review details new WHO prevalence estimates on depression, anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia in conflict-affected settings.
Page type: 
Research summaries and systematic reviews
Approach: 
Human rights
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Focused psychosocial interventions for children in low-resource humanitarian settings

This systematic review is the first study that systematically assessed randomised controlled trials on focused psychosocial support interventions for children exposed to traumatic events in humanitarian settings in low-income countries.
Page type: 
Research summaries and systematic reviews
Approach: 
Human rights
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Self-Help Plus (SH+): a guided multimedia psychosocial self-help package

A multimedia self-help package delivered by facilitators with minimal training.
Region: 
Africa
Middle East
Europe
Population: 
Adults
Humanitarian and conflict health
Disorder: 
Depression/anxiety/stress-related disorders
Alcohol/drug use disorders
11048 reads
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Step-by-step: e-mental health in Lebanon

An evidence-based WHO self-help psychological intervention that can be delivered through the internet.
Region: 
Middle East
Population: 
Adults
Humanitarian and conflict health
Disorder: 
Depression/anxiety/stress-related disorders
9896 reads
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Mental Health Among Displaced People and Refugees

Technical note from the World Bank Group, making the case for action to meet the mental health needs of displaced people and refugees
Page type: 
Policy and advocacy
Approach: 
Human rights
Advocacy
Training, education and capacity building
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Problem Management Plus (PM+)

Developing and testing a WHO brief, face-to-face, low-intensity, transdiagnostic psychological intervention.
Region: 
Africa
Asia
Disorder: 
Depression/anxiety/stress-related disorders
11384 reads
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The Chesmal Siriwardhana Memorial Lecture 2022

This is a webinar to commemorate and honour the life and work of Dr Chesmal Siriwardhana who was an Associate Professor in Global Mental Health at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. The webinar focuses on Mental Health and Psychosocial Supports in Humanitarian Settings: Lessons Learned.
Contributor(s): 
Mark van Ommeren
Post date: 
27 Jul 2022
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Evidence in the face of adversity: studying psychological interventions in humanitarian settings

Communities affected by adversity, including those facing challenges caused by major humanitarian emergencies, need effective psychological interventions but there is a lack of practical and available tools to help large numbers of people.
Author(s): 
Mark van Ommeren
Post date: 
17 Feb 2017
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Protecting the most vulnerable: Supporting people with mental disorders during disasters

The issues to be discussed and debated during the World Humanitarian Summit are all worthy, however we must not let the special needs of people with mental disorders get lost.
Author(s): 
Mark van Ommeren
Post date: 
16 May 2016
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How to build better mental health systems after emergencies

In this podcast Dr Mark Van Ommeren, WHO focal point for mental health and psychosocial support in emergencies discuss the World Health Organization report, Building Back Better: sustainable mental health care after emergencies.
Contributor(s): 
Mark van Ommeren
Post date: 
6 Feb 2015
Approach: 
Human rights
Training, education and capacity building
Disorder: 
All disorders