Concluding workshop of an inter-country cooperation project on introducing the mental health care component in general hospitals

A workshop was held in Guatemala on November 22 and 23  to conclude the technical cooperation among countries (TCC) agreement between Cuba, El Salvador, and Guatemala on Decentralization: introducing the mental health care component in general hospitals. The project aimed to step up technical cooperation on mental health between the countries by helping to introduce the mental health component in general hospitals at the emergency, hospitalization, and liaison psychiatry levels.

Representatives of the mental health programs of the three countries and PAHO/WHO focal points for this issue participated in the meeting. The discussions focused on progress and fulfillment of the anticipated results and highlighted the accomplishments made in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Cuba.

This technical cooperation project was an opportunity for the three countries to develop and strengthen the decentralization process in light of the commitment to make mental health care more accessible and rights-focused set out in PAHO’s Regional Strategy on Mental Health.