2018
In November 2018, Fountain House hosted a first-of-its-kind international conference, Healthier Longer Lives for People with Serious Mental Illness, in partnership with World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Global Mental Health at Columbia University Medical Center, Grand Challenges Canada and citiesRISE, with technical support from the World Health Organization. The idea for the conference emerged from Fountain House's multi-year partnership with WHO to address the crisis of excess mortality in people with serious mental illness. At the convening, WHO guidelines produced through the collaboration entitled, Management of physical health conditions in adults with severe mental disorders, were released.
Healthier Longer Lives was attended by over 300 scientists, practitioners, policymakers and philanthropists from more than 30 countries. The convening showcased innovations from around the world improving the health of people with serious mental illness; presented new scientific advances; raised awareness of effective interventions; engaged partners in other fields; and created a space to inspire investment in and implementation of best practices.