The clinical practice of psychiatry should incorporate a biopsychosocial model of illness, acknowledging both cultural and social influences on the patient's experience. Medical humanities include a number of academic disciplines that complement the clinical practice of psychiatry. The medical profession, including psychiatry, has a social responsibility to study the psychosocial context within which people become ill and have to be treated. Although the biopsychosocial model of illness has strong theoretical foundations, its application in clinical practice is limited. A new approach would be to restructure medical student teaching to include medical humanities in the first year, and to share such education with other professions.

Further to the publication by the London School of Economics and Political Science of the report Ending the Drug Wars, this editorial focuses on the mental health impact of the ‘war on drugs' and on the need to end such policies in favour of evidence-based interventions to manage drug dependence as a health condition.

Poverty and income inequality have increased in the UK since the 1970s. Poverty and mental ill-health are closely associated and disadvantage can have long-term consequences. In addition, the recent recession and austerity measures have had a detrimental effect on people with mental health problems and the mental health of the population. Mental health services can play a role in addressing the problems of poverty and inequality.

The United Nations' draft Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) only briefly mention mental health. In the context of a growing burden of disease due to mental disorders and psychosocial disabilities, the inclusion of a clear mental health target and indicators in the SDGs will acknowledge the needs and rights of hundreds of millions of people. It will mobilise international funding and policy development, and support other SDGs; it will also strengthen mental health structures, governance and services in low- and middle-income countries. We argue that for a just, sustainable and inclusive post-2015 development agenda, it is vital that the United Nations includes a clear mental health target and indicators in the SDGs.

The mental health effects of climate change are significant and highly concerning, yet little is known about the magnitude of these effects or how best to manage them. This introduction to the thematic papers in this issue explains why climate change is an increasingly important matter for all health services.

‘Reconciliation’ generally means the development of good relations where they have never truly existed before. This paper refers principally to the example of Northern Ireland and the Irish peace process. Psychiatrists should examine what really contributes to ‘large group’ reconciliation, as the absence of the psychiatric perspective would be a serious loss in the search for post-conflict well-being at the communal level.

In 2014, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) approved Resolution CP53.R14, which aimed to provide a framework for universal access to health and universal health coverage. It sets the stage for the inclusion of psychiatric practice within the provision of universal healthcare and highlights the fight against stigma. We propose to concentrate our efforts on changing the model of medical management. To that end, we are promoting the inclusion of mental health patients within the daily routine of primary care centres, thus allowing them to interact with other users of health services on a regular basis.

Some fear that provoking widespread worry about climate change may harm mental health. The Regional Wellbeing Survey, a large study of health, well-being and life in rural and regional Australia, examined climate change worry and attitudes. Most respondents were worried about climate change and agreed that fossil fuel use causes global warming, but there was no evidence to suggest that worry about climate change is linked to mental health in the general population. Respectful, calm, considered public debate about how to respond to climate change is unlikely to be harmful to population mental health. Individually focused clinical approaches are unlikely to be effective as a primary approach in managing the mental health impacts of climate change. Instead, collective, systems-based approaches will be needed.

Regular appraisal and revalidation are now a routine part of professional life for doctors in the UK. For British-trained psychiatrists working abroad (in either development/humanitarian or academic fields) this is a cause of insecurity, as most of the processes of revalidation are tailored to those working in the standard structures of the National Health Service. This article explores the degree to which a peer group for psychiatrists working abroad has achieved its aim of helping its members to fulfil their revalidation requirements. It gives recommendations for how those considering work abroad can maximise their chances of remaining recognised under the revalidation system.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians continue to experience disproportionately poor physical and mental health, and inequity of opportunity. Australia's Reconciliation Action Plan programme provides a framework and support for organisations to demonstrate leadership through public commitment to actions. The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists developed its own Reconciliation Action Plan through a consultative process, and hopes to lead and promote reconciliation as a peak medical body.

‘Photovoice’, a community-based participatory research methodology, uses images as a tool to deconstruct problems by posing meaningful questions in a community to find actionable solutions. This community-enhancing technique was used to elicit experiences of climate change among women in rural Nepal. The current analysis employs mixed methods to explore the subjective mental health experience of participating in a 4- to 5-day photovoice process focused on climate change. A secondary objective of this work was to explore whether or not photovoice training, as a one-time 4-to 5-day intensive intervention, can mobilise people to be more aware of environmental changes related to climate change and to be more resilient to these changes, while providing positive mental health outcomes.

Stigma attaching to mental illness has been considered a major challenge to public policies, to the provision of care and to the well-being of people who live with the experience of mental illness worldwide. Here we discuss narratives from peer support workers which we obtained during the assessment of a new psychosocial intervention programme in Rio de Janeiro. We used a range of focus groups, in-depth interviews and clinical supervision notes to derive these narratives, which covered topics such as the peer support workers' perceptions of family and social views, their sense of self and the experience of being stigmatised. We conclude that stigma appears to be a barrier to recovery. Peer support work for people with severe mental illness is a strategy that may help them to overcome stigma and discrimination. Fostering mutuality and hope in the context of peer support helps affected individuals to make sense of their being in the world and can facilitate their recovery.

Studies regarding stigma towards mental illness in Argentina blossomed after the first National Mental Health Law was passed in 2010. Methodological limitations and contradictory results regarding community perceptions of stigma hinder comparisons across domestic and international contexts but some lessons may still be gleaned. We examine this research and derive recommendations for future research and actions to reduce stigma. These include tackling culture-specific aspects of stigma, increasing education of the general population, making more community-based services available and exposing mental health professionals to people with mental illness who are on community paths to recovery.

Non-attendance at mental health clinics is an international problem. A survey was conducted in the UK investigating communication methods used by staff to inform and remind patients about appointments. Increased number of communication methods used was associated with a reduced non-attendance rate. A care modelling analysis is provided that explores the healthcare use of three hypothetical patients following clinic non-attendance. The financial and environmental costs of each are then calculated and results discussed. Reducing non-attendance is achievable through the use of multiple communication methods. This small change can improve the sustainability of mental healthcare in different countries by improving quality of care and reducing financial and environmental costs.