Mental Health Care Reforms in Asia: The Urgency of Now: Building a Recovery-Oriented, Community Mental Health Service in China

With recent passage of the National Mental Health Law, China is at a crossroads in the development of a community-based, recovery-oriented system of mental health care. In a new column, Mental Health Care Reforms in Asia, services researchers in China review the current state of the community mental health system, report results of a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats), and propose four strategic directions for future development.

For the first time in history, China has a mental health legal framework. People in China can now expect a better life and more accessible, better-quality health care services for their loved ones. Development of a community mental health service (CMHS) is at a crossroads. In this new column on mental health reforms in Asia, the authors review the current state of the CMHS in China and propose four strategic directions for future development: building on the strengths of the “686 Project,” the 2004 initiative that launched China’s mental health reform; improving professional skills of the mental health workforce, especially for a recovery approach; empowering families and caregivers to support individuals with severe mental illness; and using information and communications technology to promote self-help and reduce the stigma associated with psychiatric disorders.