Evidence on mental health policy gaps in South East Asia: A systematic review of South East Asian countries with special focus on Myanmar

Abstract

Abstract Background: The authors synthesised the findings of current and available policies on mental health in the South-East Asian region, primarily focusing and aiming at providing evidence and guidance for framing the mental health policy for Myanmar. Methodology: The research questions were framed using Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcomes and Study Design (PICOS) framework and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines were used for study selection. A comprehensive literature search of different electronic databases such as Medline, Science Direct, SCOPUS, Web of Science, EMBASE, Cochrane Library of Systematic Reviews and Google Scholar was carried out in order to identify relevant studies. Results: The main findings indicate that very few countries in the South East Asian region currently have a National Policy on mental health, and those that do have encounter several barriers in rolling out these policies. Little importance and efforts have been made to address mental health disorders, making the burden even more difficult to address. Myanmar is considerably behind other countries in the South East Asian region and is in need for developing a national policy and guidelines targeting mental health disorders. Conclusions: In order to address the mental health burden in the country, increased advocacy and evidence-based policy recommendations for integrating mental health services into national health guidelines and policy plans is necessary. Keywords: Systematic review, South-east Asia Region, Mental health, Myanmar, national policy, evidence