Promoting mental health in Europe: Why and how?

Good mental health is a critical part of individual well-being, and the foundation for happy, fulfilled, productive lives. However, this chapter finds that more than one in six people across EU countries had a mental health problem in 2016. Living with mental ill-health means that individuals are less able to succeed at school and work, are more likely to be unemployed, and may suffer worse physical health. For some, mental illnesses lead to premature mortality: over 84 000 people died of mental health problems and suicides across EU countries in 2015.The economic costs of mental illness are also significant. This chapter estimates total costs related to mental ill-health at more than 4% of GDP – or over EUR 600 billion – across the 28 EU countries in 2015. EUR 190 billion (or 1.3% of GDP) is direct spending on health care, another EUR 170 billion (1.2% of GDP) is spending on social security programmes, while a further EUR 240 billion (1.6% of GDP) is caused by indirect costs in the labour market, driven by lower employment rates and reduced productivity due to mental illness.The heavy economic, social and individual burden of mental illness is not inevitable, and more must be done to prevent and treat mental disorders, and to foster good mental health. The latter part of this chapter explores some effective ways by which European countries are promoting mental well-being and preventing mental illness, and identifies critical gaps where more action is needed.