Expertise and Development of Croatian Mental Health Policy: the Perception of Mental Health Professionals

Abstract

Previous research shows that Croatian mental health policy is not a political priority, that it lacks interdisciplinarity, intersectoral collaboration and a holistic approach. Following the assumption that one of the main reasons for this position is the low level of knowledge in mental health policy- making, this study was set to examine the role of expertise and knowledge translation in Croatian mental health policy development. The study was conducted during spring 2018 and has included 124 participants, professionals from different institutions dealing with mental health, using the snowball method. The questionnaire “Development of Croatian Mental Health Policy” was developed for the purpose of this study. The gathered qualitative and quantitative data shows that professionals in the mental health sector describe policymaking in the field as being of poor quality and highly dependent on top governmental bodies that are run by the political elite uninterested in mental health. The data also proves that mental health professionals in Croatia think about the improvement of mental health policy in line with international guidelines. Still, they rarely consider themselves an active force in policy- making. That leads us to the conclusion that experts and professionals need support to form networks, advocacy coalitions and better inter- sectoral relationships in order to influence the political will.