Upcoming events
Mental health & resilience in times of polycrisis
22 March 2023, Brussels
War in Europe, rising energy costs, climate change, upcoming viruses,... one crisis has not yet ended and another one already seems to surge. In the last years, we have been facing a situation of poly-crises. How can the population at an individual and collective level cope with this new context, knowing that each crisis has an impact on mental health and that the burden is likely to become stronger with each accumulation?
Despite multiple warning signals about the mental health of the population in general and of some groups in particular (such as youngsters and isolated people), the mental health research is still systematically underfunded in Belgium. We are still lacking targeted evidence-based interventions to strengthen mental health in citizens.
To highlight the importance of investing in mental health research and developing long-term integrated prevention policies in Belgium, the Superior Health Council organizes the meeting "Mental health & resilience in times of polycrisis" on Wednesday March 22. A panel of renowned international and Belgian experts in this field will address these issues. Keynote speakers will set the stage with analyses of the economic impact of poor mental health. In the afternoon, the most important burdens that we faced and/or are currently starting to face will be addressed during four thematic sessions: COVID-19, climate change, war/refugees and energy/economic crisis. Finally, we will conclude the day with a roundtable including key actors (policymakers, practitioners, patients).
When? Wednesday 22 March 2023 from 9 am to 4 pm
Where? Galilee Building, Avenue Galilée 5/2, 1210 Brussels (multimodal access plan)
Working language will be English for the keynotes and the thematic sessions and Dutch/French for the roundtable
Accreditation has been requested
Registrations are now open. Fill in the form via this link to reserve your seat.
Preliminary programme
Keynote speakers
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Prof. Inez Germeys KU Leuven Research in mental health: Bridging the knowledge gap |
 |
Pierre Smith Sciensano Mental health in Belgium: current trends, determinants and burden |
| David McDaid London School of Economics Economic impact of mental health |
|
| Francesca Colombo (TBC) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Cross-country comparison of mental health indicators |
Four breakout sessions on
- COVID-19
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Dr. Josefien van Olmen Universiteit Antwerpen |
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Joachim Waterschoot Universiteit Gent Pandemic Concerns Impacting People’s Psychological Well-being: the Qualifying role of Basic Psychological Needs |
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Keenan Ramsey UTwente Be-Prepared: Insights from a Dutch consortium taking a behavioral science to address the COVID-19 pandemic |
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Elise Derroitte Christian Health Insurance Fund Social Inequalities in Health |
- Refugees and trauma
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Jonathan Everaerts Doctors of the World Mental health on the move |
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Redouane Ben Driss CGG Vlaams-Brabant Oost vzw Overview of psychological complaints of asylum seekers and refugees |
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Ilse Derluyn Centre for the Social Study of Migration and Refugees (CESSMIR), Ghent University Mental health of refugees, with a particular focus on young refugees: prevalence and possible interventions |
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Marie Dauvrin Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre (KCE) Are migrants merely semi-human, then? Challenges of the health care system to meet the mental health needs of migrants |
- Economic/energy crisis
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Saskia Decuman RIZIV-INAMI Focus on mental health within health and disability insurance: state of play |
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Prof. dr. Piet Bracke Health and Demographic Research (HEDERA) group, Universiteit Gent Mental health and social inequality: myths and facts |
| Prof. Tit Albreht (TBC) National Institute of Public Health of Slovenia |
- Climate change
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Prof. dr. Ann DeSmet Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) The importance of the natural environment for mental well-being |
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Prof. Alexandre Heeren UCLouvain On Climate Change and Mental Health: What Decision-makers, Healthcare Providers, and the Mental Health Community Need to Know to Promote Resilience and Adaptation |
| TBC |
Panel discussion with people with lived experience and practitioners vs policymakers and funders
Registrations are now open. Fill in the form via this link to reserve your seat.
*https://mailchi.mp/health.fgov.be/mental-health-and-resilience-in-times-of-polycrisis
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