Improving the Women's Mental Health Status in Iran: A Policy Brief

Abstract

Mental health is considered one of the most important health indicators of societies, which is specifically followed by psychiatrists, psychologists, and other behavioral and social scientists. Women comprise half of the world's population and have a direct role in nurturing the other half. Women are always at risk of mental problems due to their multi-dimensional role in society. Although women live longer than men, they are more vulnerable to mental disorders including depression, anxiety, and Alzheimer. This policy brief is achieved through evaluating presentations at the 8th International Conference on Women's Health with a special focus on women's Mental Health held on Nov 4&5, 2019 in Tehran, Iran. The topics of the conference included measures taken to promote women's mental health, the role of policy-making in women's mental health promotion, analysis of Iranian women's mental health status, family consolidation, vulnerable women, and tlerance. Based on the findings from presentations and expert panels, women's mental health status in Iran is not desirable. So, it implies the importance of preventive interventions and improving mental health services. Other strategies could be following recommendations provided to promote women's mental health in Iran including improving primary health care by mental health services, assigning a specified authority to enhance the intra-sectoral governance and inter-sectoral leadership.

Keywords

• mental health
• women's health
• policy making
• health status
• iran