Ahead of World UHC (Universal Health Care) day on December 12, United for Global Mental Health has launched a mental health for all advocacy toolkit which contains recommendations and resources for governments to deliver change by integrating mental health into UHC.

Most countries, mental health care is not rights based, adequately financed or integrated into health systems, meaning most people with mental ill health cannot access support. The toolkit will provide, furthermore, mental health risks being excluded from new health-care reforms driven by the global push for Universal Health Coverage (UHC). To support such calls, United for Global Mental Health with the support of key partners, launched a report on integrating mental health into UHC in 2020, while in 2022 the Mental Health For All Advocacy Toolkit was designed to support partners in making use of the report and those briefs to support global and national advocacy.

The toolkit introduces the concept of UHC and contains the following:

Advocacy road map with key global moments

Official communication templates

Key global and national stakeholders

Social media assets and suggested posts

Pull out quotes and key messages

The toolkit also includes an advocacy roadmap detailing the key global moments from now until the UN high-level meeting on UHC which will take place in September 2023, there are some generic tools, such as templates for engaging policy makers, press releases and social media assets that advocates can adapt and use for their work.

Although the toolkit was designed with specific audiences in mind – such as civil society organisations (CSOs), mental health champions in government ministries and multilaterals/ INGOs, and global agencies – it can be easily adapted for use by anyone interested in the cause. The toolkit can also be helpful for organisations that do not work directly in the mental health space and are looking for a ‘one-stop shop’ on how to integrate mental health into their UHC advocacy strategies.

The theme for this year is “Build the World We Want: A Healthy Future for All.” In the ideal world, everyone has access to high-quality health care without financial constraints. UHC Day is an annual rallying point to raise their voices and ensure that mental health is meaningfully integrated into UHC related commitments and discourse, or risk it being left behind.

Ali Hasnain, Senior Officer for United for Global Mental Health said: “The toolkit seeks to equip advocates for mental health with everything they need to start or support their own efforts to have mental health integrated into UHC reforms in their own countries. The toolkit sets out the key messages that make the argument for integrating mental health into UHC – arguments that can easily be used in advocacy and adapted to fit any national debate on mental health and UHC, the report and the toolkit builds the case for support and a broad advocacy framework for future action.”