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The right to mental health 2017, para. 83
- Paragraph text
- Peer support, when not compromised, is an integral part of recovery-based services. It provides hope and empowers people to learn from each other, including through peer support networks, recovery colleges, club houses and peer-led crisis houses. Open Dialogue, a successful mental health system, has entirely replaced emergency, medicalized treatment in Lapland. Other non-coercive models include mental health crisis units, respite houses, community development models for social inclusion, personal ombudsmen, empowerment psychiatry and family support conferencing. The Soteria House project is a long-standing recovery-based model, which has been recreated in many countries. The increasing availability of alternatives and education and training on the use of non-consensual measures are critical indicators for measuring overall progress towards compliance with the right to health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Corruption and the right to health 2017, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- In terms of affordability, health-care providers can make health-care services more expensive by demanding payments (informal or under-the-table payments), which can put treatment out of reach and be a matter of life or death, contribute to morbidity or impoverish patients and their families. The payment of bribes by patients for privileged care is common in many countries and results in discriminatory access to care, with wealthier patients likely to access care more easily than those that are too poor to pay bribes. As a result of bribery in procurement processes, medicines may be more expensive.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 81
- Paragraph text
- While the paradigm shift in mental health requires a move towards integrated and population-based services, mental distress will still occur and rights-based treatment responses are required. The interventions used to address serious cases are perhaps the biggest indictment of the biomedical tradition. Coercion, medicalization and exclusion, which are vestiges of traditional psychiatric care relationships, must be replaced with a modern understanding of recovery and evidence-based services that restore dignity and return rights holders to their families and communities. People can and do recover from even the most severe mental health conditions and go on to live full and rich lives.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- Special attention should be paid to women, who suffer disproportionately from mental health practices that are based on paternalistic and patriarchal traditions, inappropriate and harmful gender stereotypes, medicalization of women’s feelings and behaviour, and coercion. Women who have suffered from violence and inequalities within their families, communities and societies, and who have mental health conditions very often face situations in mental health settings that amount to violence, coercion, humiliation and disrespect for their dignity. It is unacceptable that after suffering from violations in family and other settings, women suffer from violations again within services that are supposed to promote their mental health. In that regard, it is very important to emphasize that violations of sexual and reproductive health rights have a direct, negative impact on the mental health of women.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 67
- Paragraph text
- The right to health is an inclusive right to both health care and the underlying and social determinants of health. Public health has individual and collective dimensions, which are essential in securing the right to the enjoyment of the underlying and social determinants of health. Given the deep connections between mental health and the physical, psychosocial, political and economic environment, the right to determinants of health is a precondition for securing the right to mental health. Under international human rights law, States must act on a range of underlying determinants, such as violence, supportive family environments and discrimination, to secure in particular the right to health of children and women and persons with disabilities. In short, respecting, protecting and fulfilling the right to mental health requires concerted action to secure certain preconditions that are associated with mental health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 68
- Paragraph text
- Various international and regional processes have helped to define the public health and social justice imperatives for addressing the social determinants of health. The final report of the Commission on Social Determinants of Health was a pioneering piece that brought greater visibility to social determinants. Medicine, in particular its mental health component, is to a large extent a social science and this understanding should be used to guide its practice. To take full account of the evidence around the determinants of mental health, the right to those determinants must expand beyond inequities, discrimination and the physical environment to reflect the documented importance of healthy psychosocial environments (see A/70/213 para. 55 and A/71/304, paras. 16 and 19). That includes developing public policies that promote non-violent and respectful relationships in families, schools, workplaces, communities and health and social services.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 69
- Paragraph text
- The recognition by WHO of the importance of developing rights-based strategies, which promote and protect the mental health of entire populations, is welcomed. Individual and social factors, cultural values and the social experiences of everyday life in families, schools, the workplace and communities influence the mental health of each person. The fact that children spend a significant amount of time in schools and most adults at the workplace, means that rights-based action must promote healthy, safe and enabling environments that are free from violence, discrimination and other forms of abuse. Likewise, a person’s mental health affects life within those domains and is integral to shaping the health of communities and populations. Population-based approaches to mental health promotion move health systems beyond individualized responses towards action on a range of structural barriers and inequalities (social determinants) that can negatively affect mental health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 46
- Paragraph text
- Multiple and intersectional forms of discrimination continue to impede the ability of individuals, including women and persons from racial and ethnic minorities with disabilities, to realize their right to mental health. Discrimination and inequality are both a cause and a consequence of poor mental health, with long-term implications for morbidity, mortality and societal well-being. Discrimination, harmful stereotypes (including gender) and stigma in the community, family, schools and workplace disable healthy relationships, social connections and the supportive and inclusive environments that are required for the good mental health and well-being of everyone. Likewise, discriminatory attitudes influencing policies, laws and practices constitute barriers for those requiring emotional and social support and/or treatment. Consequently, individuals and groups in vulnerable situations who are discriminated against by law and/or in practice are denied their right to mental health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 53
- Paragraph text
- The Convention establishes that all mental health services designed for persons with disabilities are to be effectively monitored by independent authorities (art. 16.3). Human rights must be incorporated into the framework of reference for all monitoring and review procedures in the field of mental health. The Special Rapporteur encourages national human rights institutions to pay attention to the right to mental health in their monitoring and promotion activities. Persons with lived experience, their families and civil society should be engaged in the development and implementation of monitoring and accountability arrangements.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- Considering that mental health services are often underfunded, the resulting low-quality residential and in-patient psychiatric services lead to over-medicalization, violence and other forms of violations of children’s rights. These must be abandoned or substantially transformed and more importantly, programmes to respond to childhood adversity must be organized around participatory frameworks that recognize children as rights holders, respect their evolving capacities and empower children and families to improve their mental health and well-being.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Corruption and the right to health 2017, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- The right to health is recognized in the Constitution of the World Health Organization (WHO) and protected by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international human rights treaties which are binding on States parties, including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. Additionally, regional human rights treaties and many domestic constitutions protect the right to health. These international treaties and domestic laws obligate States to take action to respect, protect and fulfil the right to health and to address corruption where it interferes with their right-to-health obligations. They should inform responses to corruption alongside other legal instruments, such as the United Nations Convention against Corruption.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- Mental health services must be of good quality. That requires the use of evidence-based practices to support prevention, promotion, treatment and recovery. Effective collaboration between different service providers and people using the services and their families and care partners, also supports enhanced quality of care. The abuse of biomedical interventions, including the inappropriate use or overprescription of psychotropic medications and the use of coercion and forced admissions, compromise the right to quality care. Prioritizing the scaling-up of community-based psychosocial services and mobilizing social resources that can support everyone throughout their life course, will enhance the quality of services.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Families
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The right to mental health 2017, para. 42
- Paragraph text
- The effective realization of the right to health requires the participation of everyone, particularly those living in poverty and in vulnerable situations, in decision-making at the legal, policy, community and health service level. At the population level, empowering everyone to participate meaningfully in decisions about their health and well-being requires multisectoral and inclusive engagement with stakeholders, such as users and former users of mental health services, policymakers, service providers, health workers, social workers, the legal profession, the police, carers, family members and the wider community.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- Rapid globalization and associated social and cultural changes, reinforced by the digital world, mean that many adolescents inhabit a world very different from that of the adults around them in relation to information, the speed of change, social norms, risks, aspirations and opportunities. While these rapidly changing environments offer important opportunities for adolescents, they can also pose significant challenges to their rights, for example to privacy, informed consent and freedom from exploitation, with significant implications, in particular for their mental health and well-being. Furthermore, the speed of change can inhibit intergenerational understanding, challenging the capacity of parents and other caregivers to provide the guidance necessary to protect and promote adolescents' right to health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 85
- Paragraph text
- The vulnerability of boys to physical and sexual abuse and exploitation should be highlighted, together with the significant barriers they face in accessing sexual and reproductive information and services. Intersex adolescents often experience particular challenges because of irreversible and non-consensual surgeries performed during their early childhood and because of the natural development of their bodies. Discrimination within the family and society, as well as discriminatory attitudes by health providers, can result in the denial of access to health services, while lack of knowledge and awareness within the medical profession further impedes access to quality care.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Boys
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Sports and healthy lifestyles as contributing factors to the right to health 2016, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- Protection of the human rights of those participating in sport and physical activity is a State obligation under the right to health. There are numerous documented instances of health rights abuses within competitive sport: the General Assembly has acknowledged with concern "the dangers faced by sportsmen and sportswomen, in particular young athletes, including, inter alia, child labour, violence, doping, early specialization, overtraining and exploitative forms of commercialization, as well as less visible threats and deprivations, such as the premature severance of family bonds and the loss of sporting, social and cultural ties".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Youth
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 77
- Paragraph text
- Cost-effective public health and psychosocial interventions, including social protection, psychoeducation, coaching, counselling and psychotherapy, as well as parent training, should be available and accessible to all adolescents in need and their families. Such approaches aim at improving behaviour, holistic development and specific life skills, and reduce the need for medication. Medications and inpatient services may be needed as part of treatment plans in complex cases of mental conditions, but these treatment modalities should be used with caution. Schools are well-placed to promote emotional well-being and mental health and to prevent mental health problems, for example, through classes on mental health literacy.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- Exposure to violence increases during adolescence, to the point that it is a primary cause of mortality and morbidity in the second decade. Violence occurs in the family, in the community, at work or at the hands of State actors.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Report of the SR on the right to health and Agenda 2030 2016, para. 97
- Paragraph text
- Rights-compliant violence prevention strategies require a modern public health approach, leaving behind the ineffective and brutal legacy of retributive and punitive means to curb violence. These approaches point to an investment in healthy, non-violent and respectful interpersonal relations. This can include various psychosocial interventions, such as training of parents to raise children in non violent ways, anti-bullying programmes in schools, and empowerment of persons in vulnerable situations. Through these interventions, the resilience and protective factors in individuals, families and communities are harnessed and promoted.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- States are urged to consider the introduction of a legal presumption of competence that an adolescent seeking preventive or time-sensitive health goods and services, including for sexual and reproductive health, has the requisite capacity to access such goods and services. Where minimum ages of consent exist, as the Committee on the Rights of the Child has argued, any adolescent below that age and able to demonstrate sufficient understanding should be entitled to give or refuse consent. At a minimum, States should ensure a minimum age well below 18 years at which adolescents have the right to consent to or refuse services without mandatory authorization or notification of parent, guardian, spouse or intimate partner. The right to counselling and advice is distinct from the right to give medical consent and should not be subject to any age limit.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 74
- Paragraph text
- Prevention of mental health problems and promotion of mental well-being in adolescence should be a central part of national health policies. Action plans should include programmes for evidence-based interventions that are well-funded and monitored and that aim to reinforce protective factors within adolescents, their families and communities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Report of the SR on the right to health and Agenda 2030 2016, para. 52
- Paragraph text
- Community empowerment initiatives working with poor and marginalized communities have achieved extraordinary health outcomes, for example in the global fight to end HIV/AIDS (target 3.3) (E/HLPF/2016/2, para. 107). Economic and social empowerment, such as the decriminalization of sex work and sex worker mobilization, have improved health and identified critical health gaps (Goals 3 and 5). Community mobilization to attain adequate and stable housing for homeless people living with HIV can have life-saving implications for their health (targets 3.3 and 11.1). Efforts to empower parents in vulnerable situations through participatory parental education initiatives reduce the risk of negative health outcomes for their children (Goal 3 and targets 4.2, 5.2 and 16.2). When young girls have access to education, child mortality rates and girls' long-term health improve (Goals 3, 4 and 5) (A/70/213, para. 9). Investments in such initiatives place the human rights principles of autonomy and participation at the centre of public health policy and are critical components of an open, inclusive and peaceful society.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Girls
- Youth
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 46
- Paragraph text
- The family, in its diverse forms and arrangements, refers to the essential environment for the well-being, protection and development of children and adolescents. The recognition of diverse family forms is necessary to ensure the protection and promotion of the rights of all of children and adolescents, without discrimination of any sort.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- Accordingly, the focus should be on building resilience, supporting parents, stimulating adequate help-seeking behaviours, creating positive peer groups and school environments, ensuring opportunities for influence and decision-making, increasing empowerment and emotional literacy. Furthermore, such programmes can also address risk behaviours such as bullying, suicidal behaviour, domestic violence and substance use.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- Policies designed to protect families and family values should avoid measures that undermine the human rights of individual family members, including women, adolescents and younger children. Such approaches can be detrimental as they may, in the name of traditional values, tolerate or condone violence, reinforce unequal power relations within family settings and, therefore, deprive adolescents from the opportunity to exercise their basic rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 91
- Paragraph text
- Furthermore, States should introduce measures to raise adolescents' awareness of their rights to sexual and reproductive health and to services and goods at the family, school and community levels. Age-appropriate, comprehensive and inclusive sexuality education, based on scientific evidence and human rights, should be part of the mandatory school curriculum, with special attention given to relationships, sexuality, gender equality and identity and sex characteristics, including non-conforming gender identities, responsible parenthood and sexual behaviour, and preventing early pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health of adolescents 2016, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- Safe and supportive families are crucial to helping adolescents develop to their full potential and attain the best health into adulthood. Therefore, support of the family environment is very important for the physical and mental health of children and adolescents. States should develop policies and services that support families and strengthen their parenting competencies so that all children can grow in healthy family environments.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Adolescents
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to health in early childhood - Right to survival and development 2015, para. 41
- Paragraph text
- In contrast, the Convention separates the right to health (art. 24) and the right to survival and development (art. 6). However, there is no doubt that these articles are fundamentally linked. For example, article 24 includes a range of obligations that are inseparable from ensuring survival and development, such as diminishing infant and child mortality, providing medical assistance, combating disease and malnutrition, ensuring appropriate pre- and postnatal health care for mothers, providing access to information on child health, developing preventive health care and guidance for parents and abolishing harmful traditional practices. The right to survival and development can only be implemented in a holistic manner through the enforcement of other rights contained in the Convention, such as the right to health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Infants
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Right to health in early childhood - Right to survival and development 2015, para. 88
- Paragraph text
- States have a legally binding obligation to ensure the participation of rights holders in priority-setting; legislative and policy development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation; and accountability for the realization of the right to health and the holistic development of the young child. All segments of the population, including the most marginalized, must be empowered to participate (A/HRC/27/31, paras. 28-30). States must create an enabling environment for participation, for example by enhancing the knowledge and awareness of stakeholders, including the parents of young children.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Youth
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Right to health in early childhood - Right to survival and development 2015, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- Moreover, health and other professionals working with children should be trained on human rights and on early child development and the impact of the quality of relationships on physical and mental health during childhood and throughout life. Paediatricians, all other medical doctors and other relevant health professionals should play a more proactive role in educating families, childcare providers, teachers, policymakers, civic leaders and the general public about the health-related aspects of early child development.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph