Dear Colleagues,
We are delighted to invite you to the 23rd Congress of the World Association of Social Psychiatry at Bucharest October 25-28, 2019. As you know, this is a special occasion for all of us including our member societies, social psychiatrists and mental health professionals all over the world to meet together and engage in scientific deliberations. As you know, we are coming to Bucharest after our highly successful 22nd World Congress at New Delhi-2016.
The theme of the Congress, “Social determinants of mental health and access to care” is contemporary and relevant. It reflects our concern for mental health in this age of globalization, commercialization and the merging of boundaries between nations. Despite rapid advances in all fields, enough attention has not been devoted to the social determinants of mental health. And access to care remains severely limited in most parts of the world including high income countries. Our world is changing as never before, which has profound implications for mental health. We are sure the deliberations of the Congress will give us newer insights into the emerging dynamics in all these areas.
World Association of Social Psychiatry (WASP) is one of the oldest global mental health organizations. Having been founded in London in 1965, now we have number societies from all parts of the globe. The Romanian Association of Psychiatry and the Romanian Association of Social Psychiatry are hosting this Congress. Let me thank them and especially Prof. Doina Cozman and Dr. Alexandru Paziuc for the invitation and for their hard work in organizing this event.
We will have four days of rich scientific programme with invited lectures, symposia, workshops, free papers and posters. There will be also be cultural events and get together which will be very entertaining to you and families.
Let me specially thank my fellow members of the EC Prof. Rachid Bannegadi (President Elect), Prof. Fernando Lolas (Secretary General), Marianne Kastrup (Treasurer) and our advisors Prof. Eliot Sorel and Prof. Tom Craig. Our PCO PROevents and Conference and its leaders Dr. Theodor Badiu and Alina Puscas deserve our special appreciation.
Hearty welcome, once again!
Prof. Roy Abraham Kallivayalil
President, World Association of Social Psychiatry