Mental health services in Central and Eastern Europe: current state and continuing concerns

This paper attempts to examine the current state of mental health services in Central and Eastern Europe.

Selected review of available literature has been done with emphasis on information complied by World Health Organization (WHO).

The magnitude and burden of mental disorders is high in Europe, the mental health services are inadequate in most Central and Eastern European countries and human rights situation is unsatisfactory. However, there are some positive recent developments worth noting. These include increased attention to human rights, cooperation and collaboration at sub-regional level and emergence of family and consumer associations.

A concerted and systematic attempt needs to be made to respond to the challenge of providing adequate and human rights-based mental health services in Central and Eastern European countries. The framework developed by WHO can assist the countries in their initiatives aimed at improving mental health systems.