# Advancing mental health for all: WPA 2023–2026 action plan on clinical education and healthy lifestyles

## TL;DR

The WPA 2023–2026 Action Plan promotes mental health through inclusive education, healthy lifestyles, and suicide prevention strategies aligned with global sustainability goals.

## Contribution

The plan introduces a comprehensive framework integrating lifestyle interventions and clinical education for equitable mental health care.

## Key findings

- Healthy lifestyles like physical activity and good nutrition are emphasized for mental well-being.
- The BIC program improves suicide prevention through long-term follow-up of at-risk individuals.
- The EDIT principle ensures inclusive and culturally responsive mental health strategies.

## Abstract

The World Psychiatric Association (WPA) is dedicated to advancing mental health through evidence-based and inclusive initiatives. Its 2023–2026 Action Plan emphasizes prevention, early intervention, and comprehensive care, aligned with the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals to address broader social determinants of mental health. An important focus of the Action Plan is promoting healthy lifestyles as a fundamental component of mental well-being. Through the Healthy Lifestyle Hub, the WPA promotes the benefits of physical activity, good nutrition, and sleep hygiene in preventing and managing mental health conditions. Complementing these efforts, the Specialist Corner, through dissemination of scientific advances and their clinical applications, facilitates knowledge exchange among clinicians, researchers, and policymakers, while the WHO Brief Motivational Intervention and Contact program (BIC), comprising long-erm regular follow-up of suicide attempters after hospital discharge, enhances suicide prevention. Guided by the EDIT principle—Equality across genders, ages, and ethnicities; Developmental stages from childhood to adulthood and beyond; Inclusion; and Transcultural awareness—the WPA ensures that mental health strategies are inclusive, equitable, and culturally responsive. By integrating scientific advancements with lifestyle-based interventions, the WPA Action Plan serves as a framework for global psychiatry, advocating sustainable and comprehensive approaches to mental well-being.