Social Psychiatry and Health Services Research:

Clinically Informed Research that Translates back into Clinical Practice

Since decades, social psychiatry forms an integral part of clinical research and psychiatric practice. Its aims are to foster an integrative understanding of psychiatric diseases incorporating evidence-based biological, psychological and sociological perspectives. Social psychiatry strives to improve salutogenesis and prevention efforts, and to support the holistic treatment of in particular severely ill and difficult-to-reach patient populations.

Fortunately, there is rising awareness of how important it is that everybody in need can gain access to adequate and affordable mental health care. Health services research uses a broad spectrum of qualitative and quantitative methods to analyze access to health care and the quality, effectiveness and efficiency of mental health care services – thus, it informs the improvement of mental health care and shares and supports the goals of social psychiatry.

Our interprofessional research group integrates knowledge from basic research and uses methods from clinical and health services research to improve clinical practice and psychiatric care.