European Depression Day
Frankfurt am Main/Leipzig 03.10.2021 – EAAD supports European Depression Day and continues efforts to improve depression treatment and suicide prevention through European Union (EU) funded projects.
October 3rd – European Depression Day
European Depression Day takes place on October 3rd this year, placing a focus on depression which is considered to be among the most common and incapacitating mental disorders worldwide. According to the World Health Organization, around 40 million people suffer from depression in Europe, making it one of the most common diseases in the EU Member States. The COVID-19 crisis has increased risk factors for depression, including reduced access to healthcare services, increased social isolation, and disruptions to daily routines. This leaves those who are predisposed to depression particularly vulnerable.
Tackling depression and suicidal behaviour by fostering self-management and community engagement
The European Alliance Against Depression (EAAD), guided by its Board of Directors (Prof. Ulrich Hegerl, Prof. Ella Arensman and Dr Victor Pérez Sola) aims to improve care and treatment for patients with depression and to prevent suicidal behaviour. The works involve close collaboration with more than 120 regional network partners and members in Europe, Australia, Canada, Chile and New Zealand with the shared goal to strengthen community engagement through implementation of the 4-level intervention concept and enable people to self-manage their depression via the evidence based online iFightDepression (iFD) tool. In recognition of their effectiveness in addressing depression and suicidal behaviour, as proven by a body of scientific studies, both EAAD’s 4-level intervention concept and the iFightDepression tool were voted as ‘mental health best practices’ by representatives of EU Member States at the European Commission's Joint Research Centre in Ispra in May 2019.
EU funded projects – EAAD-Best and MENTUPP
Active since April 2021, the EAAD-Best project is led by the EAAD Coordination Centre, located in the Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy at the Goethe Universität, Frankfurt am Main. The project has two overarching aims: to improve care for patients with depression; and to prevent suicidal behaviour in Europe by transferring and implementing the 4-level intervention concept and iFD tool in eight European countries. EAAD is also actively leading two work packages in the MENTUPP project which focuses on improving mental health in the workplace in small and medium-sized enterprises in the construction, health, and information and communications technology (ICT) sectors. These projects are timely considering the exacerbation of mental health problems associated with the impacts of the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.
Together with collaborators and project partners, EAAD continues to improve the lives of people with depression and prevent suicidal behaviour.
For more information on depression and suicide prevention, please visit the following website:
For further information on the projects, please visit:
This project has received funding from the European Union’s 3rd Health Programme - Annual Work Programme 2020 (HP-PJ-2020) under grant agreement No. 101018325. The material presented and views expressed here are the responsibility of the author(s) only. The EU Commission takes no responsibility for any use made of the information set out.