Governance, choice and the global market for mental health

The provision of health services to vulnerable members of the population should be regarded as one of the prime duties of government. However, it will be apparent to any reader of International Psychiatry that access to effective mental healthcare varies widely across the world, an impression powerfully reinforced for those who have the chance to visit and work in countries facing different developmental challenges. On World Mental Health Day 2010, the Secretary-General of the United Nations called for this shortfall to be remedied (United Nations, 2010). With the globalisation of knowledge and culture affecting every facet of life across national boundaries, it is worth reviewing how such changes could influence the development of mental healthcare across the planet.