title: Global research challenges and opportunities for mental health and substance-use disorders.
abstract: The research agenda for global mental health and substance-use disorders has been largely driven by the exigencies of high health burdens and associated unmet needs in low- and middle-income countries. Implementation research focused on context-driven adaptation and innovation in service delivery has begun to yield promising results that are improving the quality of, and access to, care in low-resource settings. Importantly, these efforts have also resulted in the development and augmentation of local, in-country research capacities. Given the complex interplay between mental health and substance-use disorders, medical conditions, and biological and social vulnerabilities, a revitalized research agenda must encompass both local variation and global commonalities in the impact of adversities, multi-morbidities and their consequences across the life course. We recommend priorities for research - as well as guiding principles for context-driven, intersectoral, integrative approaches - that will advance knowledge and answer the most pressing local and global mental health questions and needs, while also promoting a health equity agenda and extending the quality, reach and impact of scientific enquiry.
authors.affiliation: Makerere University School of Public Health, PO Box 7072, Kampala, Uganda.
authors.forename: Florence
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Baingana
authors.affiliation: Duluth Medical Research Institute (DMRI), University of Minnesota Medical School, 311-1035 University Drive, Duluth, Minnesota 55812, USA.
authors.forename: Mustafa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: al'Absi
authors.affiliation: Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School, 641 Huntington Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 03115, USA.
authors.forename: Anne E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Becker
authors.affiliation: Office for Research on Disparities &Global Mental Health, National Institute of Mental Health, 6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 7207, Bethesda, Maryland 20892, USA.
authors.forename: Beverly
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pringle
mesh_terms: D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000639:trends*; D003695:Delivery of Health Care; D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D008603:Mental Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy