First ladies or their representatives from several Pan American countries signed a joint resolution last month in Washington, D.C., calling for new international programs to improve mental health, particularly women's mental health.

First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton met privately with the first ladies to support their efforts to make mental health a priority, according to the Associated Press.

Former first lady Rosalynn Carter said, "We are losing the war on mental health here in the United States and around the world." Carter is the founding chair of the International Committee of Women Leaders for Mental Health, which sponsored its inaugural meeting at the Pan American Health Organization with the Carter Center and the World Federation for Mental Health.

"The initiatives set forth today will raise global awareness on mental health issues and make important steps toward winning this crucial battle," added Carter.

According to figures released by the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) last month, more than 1.5 billion people worldwide suffer from mental illness or substance abuse. However, only 1 percent of those individuals receive the necessary psychiatric treatment.

The W.H.O. report also projected that mental illness will be the foremost threat to health worldwide, surpassing smoking and traffic accidents, and it will be the most debilitating health problem in developing countries by the year 2020, noted a press statement.

Mental health experts attending the international conference included APA's Donna Stewart, M.D., a member of the Committee on Women and the Lillian Love Chair in Women's Health at the Toronto Hospital in Ontario, Canada.

Stewart commented to Psychiatric News that the meeting was significant because "it was the first time that such a large group of women leaders and experts were assembled to further women's mental health."

The leaders provided international perspectives on the adverse effects of poverty, violence, power differentials, lack of education, sanitation, and health services on women's mental health. Other issues addressed were the importance of early education on gender respect and conflict resolution and the importance of personal control of fertility.

"The highlight of the conference was the signing of an agreement by the first ladies of the Pan American countries to advance women's mental health initiatives in their home countries and across the Americas," said Stewart.

The joint resolution also calls for