Objectives In 1974, Iraj Siasisi and Ahmad Mohit decided to open a psychiatry/mental health institute in Iran. They aimed to radically change mental health, addiction prevention, and mental rehabilitation training, as well as national mental health research and services in Iran. To this end, two years later in 1976, Tehran Institute of Psychiatry was founded in Tehran. Then in 2013, its name changed to School of Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health. This paper reports the process of developing the Institute and mental health services in Iran and Eastern Mediterranean Region.
Methods This report is the last section of a three-part report published in this journal in 2017. The study method was an in-depth interview with the present director of the Institute and literature/ document analysis. The author at first recorded and documented the interview and then reviewed its content and relevance to academic literature.
Results The main purpose of establishing Tehran Institute of Psychiatry was to decentralize the services of psychiatry, clinical psychology, and mental health from state and big psychiatric hospitals to small medical centers in Iran. This important step resulted in an evolution in mental hospitals care facilities and decentralization care in many small/ general hospitals all over Iran. This center integrated mental health into the primary health cares in Iran, created a platform to develop mental health program for the country, and became responsible for implementing it, as well. Furthermore, every year a lot of experts in relevant areas of knowledge are being trained in this institute and many national research has been undertaking in it.
Conclusion History of mental health and addiction prevention, decentralization of psychiatric services, and integration of mental health in primary health care in Iran and some other countries are immensely devoted to Tehran Institute of Psychiatry: School of Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health.