Patrick and Amy Kennedy with Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski and First Lady Nancy Lange (Source: ANDINA/Difusión)
Patrick J. Kennedy traveled to Lima, Peru this week to attend “Mental Health and Substance Use: Priorities for Practice and Policy,” a symposium hosted by the Global Mental Health Program at Columbia University in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia and the Instituto Nacional de Psiquitria Ramon de la Fuente Muniz.
The Global Symposium brings together scholars, clinicians, advocates, and researchers from around the region to nurture innovative approaches to advance policy and practice at the intersection of mental health and substance use disorders. The Symposium also aims to galvanize a movement to address the disparity between the burden of mental health conditions and the resources allocated to treat these conditions.
Patrick Kennedy delivered opening remarks and introduced the President of the Republic of Peru, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, at his request. Other speakers at the event include leadership from WHO, Columbia University, National Institute of Psychiatry of Mexico, and the Ministry of Health of Peru.
Read more about the Global Symposium here.
