International Health Partners joins with Lundbeck to offer first mental health programme

International Health Partners joins with Lundbeck to offer first mental health programme

LONDON, UK – International Health Partners (IHP) is excited to announce a new partnership with H. Lundbeck A/S, the Denmark-based, global pharmaceutical company specialising in brain diseases. This partnership will mark the first ever mental health programme offered by IHP.

Manufactured to be donated, the medication provided by Lundbeck will enable IHP to offer a targeted programme in the Middle East & Africa region (MEA) through its network of in-country partners. Working closely with NGOs in-country, IHP is able to facilitate and respond to the specific medical needs of some of the region’s most vulnerable communities who would otherwise have no access to this kind of treatment.

Mental health is an area with massive unmet needs, widespread stigmatization, and a lack of funding compared to other healthcare areas, despite ample evidence of socio-economic benefits1. Access to treatment and services for mental health is an element of healthcare provision which is often overlooked and unequal in who it serves. The COVID-19 pandemic has also disrupted health services around the world, with those living in disaster-hit and vulnerable communities hardest hit. In the MEA region, the harsh economic downturn in the wake of the pandemic, has left many unable to afford the healthcare provision they need.

Through this partnership, Lundbeck and IHP hope to address these issues, raising awareness of mental health conditions, providing vital access to underserved communities, and offering much-needed support to those living with brain diseases.

“At Lundbeck, we are committed to develop treatments that can help people living with brain diseases. We believe that we have a responsibility, not just to bring forward innovative treatments, but also to help people with brain diseases access them,” said Henrik Agerbaek-Larsen, MEA Managing Director at Lundbeck. “We are very pleased to see the first shipments of donated products reach IHP’s partner clinics in Lebanon in the coming weeks. This is one of the ways we work to reduce the burden of inequality and provide appropriate assistance to people who depend upon treatment and necessary medications,” he added.

Adele Paterson, CEO of International Health Partners, added: “We are delighted to be able to offer our first targeted mental health programme through this exciting new partnership with Lundbeck. Our collaboration will not only help to lighten the burden for those living with poor mental health, but also raise awareness and begin to change perceptions of these complex and often stigmatized conditions.”