The WHO collaborative study on strategies for extending mental health care, I: The genesis of the study

In 1975 the World Health Organization began a multinational collaborative study of the feasibility and effectiveness of offering community-based mental health care in developing countries. Services were to be offered by primary health care workers in pilot study areas in seven countries. The authors discuss the philosophic and epidemiologic underpinnings of the study, the factors that helped the collaborative effort develop, and some of the issues that emerged. Areas for future study are outlined.