Why systems change is needed for family mental health

When a parent experiences mental illness, the effects are often felt across throughout the family and generations. While there are interventions that can support families through these experiences, change is needed to implement them across health and social care systems.

In her recent paper International perspectives on implementation of system change in family mental health, Dr Melinda Goodyear, Emerging Minds’ Chief Advisor of Policy and Impact, collaborated with over 100 experts from 17 countries to reflect on what it takes to embed sustained, family-focused systems change. The message from this research was clear: no single lever is enough.