JA ImpleMENTAL Implementing the Belgian Best Practice on Community Mental Health system Reform

Abstract Mental health challenges affect more than one in six people across the EU. In order to support Member States to proceed with mental health care system transformation and suicide prevention JA ImpleMENTAL, was initiated on the request of Member States, on October 2021 under the European Union 3rd Health Program. The JA consists of 39 organizations from 21 countries, more than 180 persons are working. Two advisory bodies support the consortium and provide their insights and expertise, a stakeholder forum with 10 key European Organizations in Mental Health including EUPHA Mental Health Section and WHO Europe and OECD, and the Member State Policy Committee which ensures the involvement of ministries and enables the practices to be embedded in health systems. Within the 11 countries implementing pilots under the Belgium model using a common Implementation Strategy, a total 163 activities are implemented under the 5 following key areas: 62 on structural measures needed for the establishment of local networks promoting a user’s centered, human’s right based recovery approach, 43 for the development and/or transformation of mental health services, 22 on training & capacity building in support of the reform and cultural change, 22 on continuous communication, information and awareness raising, and 13 on data collection, monitoring and evaluation. An analysis of MS pilot action plans shows that most service transformation efforts have concentrated on: defining care pathways for people at risk and for those with mild to severe mental health conditions including smooth transition from child and adolescent to Adult Mental Health services, as well as from inpatient to community services, the nomination of case managers for assisting individuals to their recovery process the development of individual service plans, the Involvement of users in various layers of service delivery including peer support and the provision of assertive treatment through mobile units.