|
Mental Health
Mental health services, broadly defined, comprise a mix of health, social, vocational, recreational, volunteer, occupational therapy, and educational services, as well as housing and income support. They include a range of activities and objectives ranging from mental health promotion and the prevention of mental health problems to the treatment of acute psychiatric disorders and the support and rehabilitation of persons with severe and persistent psychiatric disorders and disabilities. The full care offers access to documents of interest to planners, policy makers and service providers in the field of mental health service delivery.
What is Mental Health?
Mental health is a term used to describe either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and efforts to achieve psychological resilience.
The World Health Organization defines mental health as "a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community”. It was previously stated that there was no one "official" definition of mental health. Cultural differences, subjective assessments, and competing professional theories all affect how "mental health" is defined.
History
History of mental disorders in the mid-19th century, William Sweeter was the first to clearly define the term "mental hygiene", which can be seen as the precursor to contemporary approaches to work on promoting positive mental health. Isaac Ray, one of thirteen founders of the American Psychiatric Association, further defined mental hygiene as an art to preserve the mind against incidents and influences which would inhibit or destroy its energy, quality or development.
At the beginning of the 20th century, Clifford Beers founded the National Committee for Mental Hygiene and opened the first outpatient mental health clinic in the United States.
|
|
