The Society of Social Psychiatry and Mental Health

The Society of Social Psychiatry and Mental Health is a non-profit, non – governmental scientific ogranisation which was founded in 1981. The Society has made a significant contribution to Greece’s psychiatric reform and offers high quality psychiatric and psychological support services in order to ensure the population’s mental health and well-being. Since 1964, a dedicated team of colleagues and Professor P. Sakellaropoulos that later founded the Society of Social Psychiatry and Mental Health, began working for the Psychiatric Reform of Greece. Based on the principles of Social – Community Psychiatry, they began working with the model of Psychiatric Care at the Patients Home. Since then, the Society has been offering mental health services that cover remote and run-down areas of Greece.

The Services provided cover a large part of the psychiatric needs of children and adults in the areas where the Society operates, that is, the Prefectures of Fokida, Fthiotida and Attica in Central Greece and the Prefectures of Xanthi, Rodopi and Evros in Northeastern Greece.

The Society works for the prevention of mental health problems, the timely intervention and the social and professional rehabilitation of people with mental health problems. The Society operates within the ideological framework of Social Psychiatry and all the prevention and therapeutic services provided are offered within the community.

We believe that emphasis should be placed on treatment outside the hospital (primary care) in order to cover the population’s needs. The psychiatric or general hospitals may offer help only when working closely and harmoniously with out-of-hospital structures. Without these structures, the patients will inevitably be hospitalized and institutionalized.

The Society also offers specialized training programmes for the creation of high caliber mental health professionals, that will promote Greece’s Psychiatric Reform and will upgrade the out of hospital structures and mental health services.

The Society is funded by the Ministry of Health and Social Protection (National Budget Funds), while other funds include EU Programmes, Sponsors’ funds and private donations.