3RD PUBLIC HEALTH CONVENTION ON MENTAL HEALTH

Mental health cuts across populations from all walks of life and is an integral part of the entirety of health. The Philippines, with the help of the country’s leading mental health advocates has already reached significant milestones including the passing of Republic Act 11036 otherwise known as the “Mental Health Act” along with the formulation of its Implementing Rules and Regulations. The law places special focus towards improving the mental health of the population in schools, workplaces and communities, underscoring the basic right of all Filipinos towards these services.

Consequently, the Philippine Council for Mental Health (PCMH) as mandated by law was organized. This Council, chaired by the Department of Health (DOH), serves as a policy-making advisory body to implement the Mental Health Act and spearheaded activities reflected in the newly developed Mental Health Strategic Plan.

As the country marked the World Mental Health Day, the 3rd Public Health Convention on Mental Health was also conducted on October 10-11, 2019 to showcase major breakthroughs and accomplishments, relive success stories of different agencies, and gather various key stakeholders towards building a network of resources as we scale up mental health interventions in the country thus unifying efforts toward saving lives.

The 3rd Public Health Convention on Mental Health aims to showcase various mental health activities and accomplishments and present the Mental Health Strategic Plan created by the Philippine Council for Mental Health (PCMH) in hopes of raising awareness on the available services and linking resources to our service users.