Mental disorders are a global problem and represent one of the biggest challenges for health care systems. In the world, there are some 500 million people suffering from mental disorders, and in the European Union, mental disorders range as one of the leading causes of disease burden. What makes the situation worse is that the prevalence of mental and neurological disorders is expected to grow for a variety of reasons: an ageing population will lead to an increased risk for age-related mental illness and neurological disorders, especially dementia and Parkinson-s disease. By 2040, Alzheimer-s disease will double in Western and triple in Eastern Europe. Furthermore, with increasing economic troubles, work-related psychosocial risk factors such as reduced job security, work intensification, and a poor work-life balance become more widespread, affecting both men and women.
Due to work-related stress and mental health problems, levels of absenteeism, unemployment and long-term disability claims are increasing. In many EU Member States they are the leading cause of sickness absence from work and permanent withdrawal from the labour market. Poor mental health can account for more than 40% of all long-term disability claims. Premature retirement on the grounds of poor mental health is also increasing. In the EU, work-related costs due to mental health problems are more than 2.5 times greater than those associated with cardiovascular disease: The total costs of absenteeism and premature retirement due to mental health disorders in the EU-25 (plus Norway, Iceland and Switzerland) were -136.3 billion in 2007, including -99.3 billion for depression and anxiety-related disorders.
Furthermore, mental disorders are common in older people and represent a barrier for active ageing. In the EU, 10% of those over 65 suffer from depression, and over 5 million people have dementia (about 1.1.3% of the population). The prevalence of Alzheimer-s disease is expected to rise dramatically with an ageing population, because it affects about 2% amongst 65 years olds and about 22% amongst those 85 years. In addition, older people are the group with the highest suicide rates in Europe (18.75 per 100000).