Spain’s responsiveness to population mental health needs: lessons from a critical comparison with other European countries

• Javier-David Lopez-Morinigo ^[1] ; Mercedes Navío ^[2] ; Celso Arango ^[3]
  1. [1] Universidad Internacional de La Rioja

     Universidad Internacional de La Rioja

     Logroño, España

     
  2. [2] Universidad Complutense de Madrid

     Universidad Complutense de Madrid

     Madrid, España

     
  3. [3] Hospital Universitario La Paz

     Hospital Universitario La Paz

     Madrid, España

     

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• Localización: European journal of psychiatry, ISSN 0213-6163, Vol. 40, Nº 3, 2026
• Idioma: inglés
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ejpsy.2026.100365
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• Resumen

  • his study compared Spain’s responsiveness in healthcare and the non-healthcare systems to population mental health (MH) needs with that of all other European Union (EU) countries and the United Kingdom (UK) using data from the 2023 Headway Initiative.

    Regarding responsiveness in healthcare, Spain scored 3.4 (out of 10), ranking 17th, whereas in the non- healthcare system Spain scored 4.5, ranking 25th.

    Spain’s responsiveness to population MH needs remains comparatively lower than that of most European countries. Improved governance and integration of services, digitalisation, research and prevention should guide future MH policies in Spain, for which increased MH expenditure will be required.