People with severe mental illnesses have a shorter life expectancy, which is attributable to a great extent to physical comorbidities. In addition to the side effects of medication, unhealthy lifestyle habits play a significant role. Although psychosocial interventions to promote a healthy lifestyle are recommended in medical guidelines, the authors of the S3 guideline for psychosocial interventions assume that these have not yet been systematically implemented in clinical routine. Despite the available evidence and their adoption in guidelines, the limited availability of such services appears to be primarily due to barriers to implementation, such as the continuing separation between physical and mental health care. To close this gap, complex approaches are needed that aim to change care structures through multi-professional teams. With this in mind, the ESSENzPSYCHE network was founded in September 2021 to tackle this challenge with a participatory and evidence-based approach. Activities are planned and implemented according to the "Theory of Change" approach. People with mental health conditions and professionals from various fields (e.g. dietitians, psychiatrists, psychologists) from Germany, Austria and Switzerland meet online every month to jointly develop and implement measures that enable holistic care for people with mental health conditions and at the same time strengthen the self-care of people living with mental illness. 

If you are interested in participation, please send us an email to NutriMental(at)uni-ulm.de

Dates for 2024 and 2025:

• 07.10.24 - 7:00 pm
• 11.11.24 - 10:00 am
• 16.12.24 - 7:00 pm
• 13.01.25 - 10:00 am
• 10.02.25 - 7:00 pm
• 10.03.25 - 10:00 am
• 14.04.25 - 7:00 pm
• 12.05.25 to 14.05.25 international meeting in Ulm
• 02.06.25 - 10:00 am
• 14.07.25 - 7:00 pm
• 15.09.25 - 10:00 am
• 13.10.25 - 7:00 pm
• 10.11.25 - 10:00 am
• 08.12.25 - 7:00 pm

Further reading:

• Müller-Stierlin et al. 2022 (https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/s-0042-1748276)
• Hiltensperger et al. 2024 (https://www.thieme-connect.de/products/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/a-2264-2508)

Role of the Institute	Head of the network
Funding period	No funding
Cooperation partners	about 60 participants from Germany, Austria and Switzerland
Project funding	No funding