This study sought to evaluate the quality of care in Czech psychiatric hospitals and adherence to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Each psychiatric hospital was evaluated by a team comprising a service user, a psychiatrist, a social worker, a human rights lawyer, and a researcher, all trained in using the World Health Organization's QualityRights Toolkit. We conducted content analysis on internal documents from psychiatric hospitals, observed everyday practices, and conducted 579 interviews across public psychiatric hospitals between 2017 and 2019. We found that none of the CRPD articles as assessed by the QualityRights Toolkit was fully adhered to in Czech psychiatric hospitals. We recommend both facility- and system-level interventions to improve CRPD adherence in the Czech context and in the wider region of Central and Eastern Europe. To achieve this, substantial investments are required.

Chief Executive Officer at Nevypusť duši Czech Republic

Freelance manager and lecturer with extensive experience in community mental health and anti stigma projects Czech Republic

Head of the Department of Public Mental Health at the National Institute of Mental Health Czech Republic

Researcher at the Department of Public Mental Health at the National Institute of Mental Health Czech Republic

Technical Officer with the Mental Health Programme World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe Denmark

See more in PubMed

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Mental health plans and policies across the WHO European region

Development of public stigma toward people with mental health problems in Czechia 2013-2019