TY - JOUR
T1 - Developmental assistance for child and adolescent mental health in low- and middle-income countries (2007-2014)
T2 - Annual trends and allocation by sector, project type, donors and recipients
AU - Turner, Jasmine
AU - Pigott, Hugo
AU - Tomlinson, Mark
AU - Jordans, Mark J.D.
N1 - Funding Information:
Over 90% of DAMH–CA in the humanitarian sector was directed at the provision of psychosocial support, where the majority of projects funded counselling and well-being promotion projects. Very little was invested in building the capacity of communities and aid workers to sustain the psychosocial response in the long–term, and none was invested in research. Similarly, the majority of DAMH–CA invested in the general health sector was aimed at the provision of psychosocial support, of which 68% of the projects were funded by UNICEF, predominantly as child friendly spaces. Other project types included training caregivers and counsellors in psychosocial support, well-being promotion projects, and the construction of youth mental health centres. Again, there was no investment in research. Substance use was the only sector which received DAMH–CA for all project types, and which was aimed predominantly at prevention of drug abuse, particularly in South America. Other projects included psychoeducation and improvement of counselling services, and many focused on street children. Much of the DAMH–CA for autism projects funded those supporting and training families to take care of their children’s needs, establishing specialised centres and services, and providing therapy. Over half of the projects in the education sector had a capacity–building focus; the development of mental health services in schools, and construction of specialised centres. Others involved well-being promotion programmes and those supporting cognitive development. There were no projects focusing on prevention of mental disorders within education. Over 80% of DAMH– CA targeting children and adolescents affected directly or indirectly by HIV/AIDS funded the provision of psychosocial support, and most of the remaining assistance was spent on projects that trained counsellors or increased access to counsellors. Very little money – less than 1% of total DAMH–CA – was invested in the promotion of rights of people with mental health problems, but those that were funded frequently supported young people to be advocates for mental health and mental health care. Lastly, most funding within neuro supported the building of observatories, establishment of services, and training of staff for improved care for children and adolescents with neurological and intellectual disabilities.
PY - 2017/12/19
Y1 - 2017/12/19
N2 - Background Globally, mental disorders are the leading cause of disability among children and adolescents. To date, there has been no estimate of developmental assistance supporting mental health projects that target children and adolescents (DAMH-CA). This study aimed to identify, describe and analyse DAMH-CA with respect to annual trends (2007-2014), sector, project type, recipient regions, and top donor and recipient countries, and estimate annual DAMH-CA per child/adolescent by region. Methods Developmental assistance for all projects focused on children and adolescent mental health between 2007 and 2014 was identified on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Creditor Reporting System, and analysed by target population, sector, project type, donors, and recipients. The study did not include governmental or private organisation funds, nor funding for projects that targeted the community or those that included mental health but not as a primary objective. Results Between 2007 and 2014, 704 projects were identified, constituting US$ 88.35 million in DAMH-CA, with an average of 16.9% of annual development assistance for mental health. Three quarters of DAMH-CA was used to fund projects in the humanitarian sector, while less than 10% was directed at mental health projects within the education, HIV/AIDS, rights, and neurology sectors. DAMH-CA was predominantly invested in psychosocial support projects (US$ 63.24 million, 72%), while little in absolute and relative terms supported capacity building, prevention, promotion or research, with the latter receiving just US$ 1.2 million over the eight years (1.4% of total DAMH-CA). For 2014, DAMH-CA per child/adolescent was US$ 0.02 in Europe, less than US$ 0.01 in Asia, Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean, and US$ 0 in Oceania. Conclusions To mitigate the growing burden of mental and neurological disorders, increased financial aid must be invested in child and adolescent mental health, especially with respect to capacity building, research and prevention of mental disorder projects. The present findings can be used to inform policy development and guide resource allocation, as current developmental assistance is described by sector and project type, thereby facilitating the identification of specific areas of investment need.
AB - Background Globally, mental disorders are the leading cause of disability among children and adolescents. To date, there has been no estimate of developmental assistance supporting mental health projects that target children and adolescents (DAMH-CA). This study aimed to identify, describe and analyse DAMH-CA with respect to annual trends (2007-2014), sector, project type, recipient regions, and top donor and recipient countries, and estimate annual DAMH-CA per child/adolescent by region. Methods Developmental assistance for all projects focused on children and adolescent mental health between 2007 and 2014 was identified on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Creditor Reporting System, and analysed by target population, sector, project type, donors, and recipients. The study did not include governmental or private organisation funds, nor funding for projects that targeted the community or those that included mental health but not as a primary objective. Results Between 2007 and 2014, 704 projects were identified, constituting US$ 88.35 million in DAMH-CA, with an average of 16.9% of annual development assistance for mental health. Three quarters of DAMH-CA was used to fund projects in the humanitarian sector, while less than 10% was directed at mental health projects within the education, HIV/AIDS, rights, and neurology sectors. DAMH-CA was predominantly invested in psychosocial support projects (US$ 63.24 million, 72%), while little in absolute and relative terms supported capacity building, prevention, promotion or research, with the latter receiving just US$ 1.2 million over the eight years (1.4% of total DAMH-CA). For 2014, DAMH-CA per child/adolescent was US$ 0.02 in Europe, less than US$ 0.01 in Asia, Africa, and Latin America and the Caribbean, and US$ 0 in Oceania. Conclusions To mitigate the growing burden of mental and neurological disorders, increased financial aid must be invested in child and adolescent mental health, especially with respect to capacity building, research and prevention of mental disorder projects. The present findings can be used to inform policy development and guide resource allocation, as current developmental assistance is described by sector and project type, thereby facilitating the identification of specific areas of investment need.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85039055425
U2 - 10.7189/jogh.07.020901
DO - 10.7189/jogh.07.020901
M3 - Article
C2 - 29302326
AN - SCOPUS:85039055425
SN - 2047-2978
VL - 7
JO - Journal of Global Health
JF - Journal of Global Health
IS - 2
M1 - 020901
ER -