Promoting mental health and social well-being: Cross border opportunities and challenges

Barry, MM; Friel, S; Dempsey, C; Avalos, G (2002) Promoting Mental Health and Social Well-being: Cross Border Opportunities and Challenges. The Centre for Cross Border Studies.

Abstract

This project reviews current cross-border co-operation in the development of mental health promotion in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The project is comprised of two main strands of work: i) an investigation of cross-border collaborative mental health promotion practices. ii) an examination of the compatibility and comparability of mental health and related health data sources. In order to inform the strategic development of collaborative practice, data collection and policy in this growing area, this project entails: Systematically documenting the extent and nature of mental health promotion strategies being implemented on a cross-border basis. Undertaking an in-depth case study investigation of five selected projects in order to identify key barriers and challenges to conducting cross-border co- operation. Examining the comparability and harmonisation of current data sources on population mental health, quality of life and related lifestyle patterns. Making recommendations with regard to the necessary research and practice infrastructures for future effective North-South collaboration at a strategic level. This project was carried out in two phases. Phase 1 of the project involved the collection, collation and analysis of primary and secondary data. Phase 2 focused on the in-depth examination of the policy and practice implications arising from the findings of Phase 1. Chapter 1 gives the background and rationale to this project and explores the setting for collaboration on an all-island basis. Chapter 2 deals with the project aims and objectives, while Chapter 3 gives detail on the methodologies employed for both phases of the study. Chapter 4 presents the findings from the Phase 1 investigation of cross-border collaborative mental health promotion practices, including details of the five case study profiles. Chapter 5 details the findings from the Phase 2 investigation of collaborative practice and mental health promotion policy on an all-island and international basis. Also presented in this chapter are the findings from the group discussions, roundtable meeting and questionnaire survey. Chapter 6 presents findings from the Phase 1 investigation of the compatibility and comparability of mental health and related data sources. This chapter also presents Phase 2 findings in relation to data and a comparison between both jurisdictions from existing data sets. Chapter 7 is the concluding chapter, which draws together all the findings from the report and makes recommendations for the future development of mental health promotion and social well-being on an all-island basis.

Funder

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Publisher

Centre For Cross Border Studies

Rights

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Ireland

cbn

Collections

Health Promotion (Reports)