INVESTMENT ROUND: IMPACT STORY

Patients access quality mental health services in Jordan

WHO supports an upgrade of the National Center for Mental Health

Jordan’s National Center for Mental Health (NCMH) is tasked with delivering the full range of mental health services. Until recently, it was not set up to provide holistic care in line with human rights.

WHO supported NCMH to upgrade its facilities, reorganize the service delivery model and enhance staff capacities to create a therapeutic environment for patients while upholding human rights.

WHO supported Jordan with community-based mental health services, delivered in an integrated way across the health system, to improve quality of care and protect human rights.

WHO organized study visits for NCMH to a WHO Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Mental Health in Italy to support their learning. It organized technical missions to advocate deinstitutionalization, restructuring of governance for mental health in the Ministry of health, and mobilizing action for reform.

WHO developed an evidence-based roadmap to accelerate re-orienting of mental health services. It provided technical support to develop the new National Action Plan 2022-2026 and strengthen the capacity of NCMH multidisciplinary teams. Finally, it provided financial support to facilitate renovations and improvements in the NCMH.

About 75 patients are already benefiting from the markedly better equipped and improved care environment.

The intervention by WHO was an important step towards supporting the deinstitutionalization process, safeguarding basic human rights and improving quality of care. Patient outcomes have improved, prompting NCMH to ask WHO to extend its technical and logistics support to the facility. WHO has pledged ongoing collaboration with NCMH, committing to elevate the standards of mental health facilities across Jordan.

“The privacy of patients in the renovated sections has been significantly enhanced thanks to the comprehensive renovation carried out by the World Health Organization.” said Dr Mekhled Al-Balawneh, Deputy Director of NCMH.

→ Read the full story: WHO’s support to Jordan to upgrade the quality of care for mental health patients and uphold human rights

A fully funded WHO will enable the Organization to "promote health" and provide more quality mental health care which contribute towards 6 billion people living healthier lives by 2028.

Strengthening Jordan’s National Center for Mental Health to provide quality care is an example of WHO delivering on improving health service coverage and provide equity in access to quality services improved for mental health, contributing to WHO's Fourteenth General Programme of Work (GPW 14), strategic objective 4.1.

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