Sciensano is responsible for several research projects in the field of mental health which have the following general objectives:
- Monitor the well-being and mental health aspects of the general population
- Monitor of the well-being and mental health aspects of some vulnerable groups
- Develop information tools
Some key projects are:
The Belgian Health Interview Survey (HIS) provides every 4 or 5 years an overall picture of the health
status of the general population and assess to following mental health outcomes (self-reported):
- Psychological well-being
- Mental disorders (eating disorders, anxiety, depression, suicide thoughts/attempts)
- Management of depression (treatment, therapy, medication)
- Use of psychotropic drugs (antidepressants and sedatives)
- Childhood psychic disorders (relational, emotional, conduct, ADHD, prosocial behaviour)
- Related behaviours (alcohol, drugs, tobacco, gambling…)
The Belgian Health and Wellbeing Cohort (BELHEALTH) is a longitudinal study in the general population aiming to:
- Monitor the evolution of the health and wellbeing of the adult population in Belgium
- Assess the impact of different and actual global threats on the health and wellbeing of the population
- Assess how the population deals over time with the developing crises (e.g. COVID-19, war in Ukraine, energy environmental and energy crisis), given the personal factors (e.g. personality) and socio-demographic factors (e.g. age)
- Identify the factors that strengthen the resilience of the population
- Identify subgroups that are more at risk of psychological distress in times of stress
- Develop recommendations and inform stakeholders
The Mental Health Dashboard has been developed to bring together mental health related data from different national and regional sources in order to present the following key indicators on mental health in Belgium:
- Proportion of the adult population with: (1) depressive disorder, (2) anxiety disorder, (3) low life satisfaction, (4) low satisfaction with social contacts
- Proportion of the adult population with: (1) high satisfaction of their psychological needs, (2) good sleep quality, (3) high vitality, (4) high sense of worry
- Number of suicides and suicide attempts in the adult population
- The percentage of adults that purchased a prescribed antidepressant
- Figures on the use of the following mental health services: (1) psychiatric hospitals, (2) psychiatric ward in general hospitals, (3) adult mental health networks, (4) child mental health networks
- Long-term disability due to burnout, depression and other mental health problems
- Proportion of adults with a depressive or anxiety disorder who use illicit drugs
- Number of calls to the suicide prevention and support centre
The Health Status Report “For a healthy Belgium” has a specific chapter for mental health in which key indicators and results are presented and explained in order to inform stakeholders about the priorities in terms of mental health in Belgium.