Ricardo Araya, MD, MRCPsych, PhD
In the nineties I held important posts at the Ministry of Health (Primary Care) in Chile. A randomized controlled trial undertaken by my team and published in Lancet paved the way to the introduction of the first National Depression Treatment Programme in Primary Care in Chile. This is the only example of a scaled up programme in mental health over the last 10 years in a low-and-middle income country. This model of care has been adapted and replicated in several countries (India, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Colombia, Brazil, Lebanon).
I lead as a Co-PI (with Professor Paulo Menezes from USP) a Mental Health Research Hub in Latin America focusing on the integration of management for chronic diseases, which also has a capacity building component. I have served as a member of various WT panels for almost 10 years.
Currently I am a member of the Joint Global Health Trials panel. I have been a member of the Global Mental Health Challenges initiative funded by the Canadian government. At present I am Co-Director of the Centre for Global Mental Health based jointly between the LSHTM and the IoP in London. I am a member of the Editorial Board of several journals including the British Journal of Psychiatry and the Lancet Psychiatry.
