The Center for Research in Mental Health creates public policy support unit

The new unit will focus on data science, neuroscience, population-based epidemiology, and mental healthcare for children, adolescents, and young adults.

Agência FAPESP* – The Center for Research and Innovation in Mental Health (CISM) and the Child Mind Institute have created a new research module focused on data science, neuroscience, population-based epidemiology, and mental healthcare for children, adolescents, and young adults. The initiative will receive BRL 22.8 million in funding from FAPESP and the Child Mind Institute’s Stavros Niarchos Foundation Global Center (SNF).

The CISM is one of FAPESP’s Applied Research Centers (ARCs), headquartered at the University of São Paulo (USP), in partnership with the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) and the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS). Three research modules are already in operation: precision neuroscience; emerging ideas in digital mental health, innovation, and entrepreneurship; and implementation science in mental health and technology transfer to society.

“This is a historic opportunity to change the course of youth mental health in Brazil,” emphasizes Eurípedes Constantino Miguel, coordinator of the CISM and head of the Department of Psychiatry at the USP Medical School (FM-USP). “We’re moving beyond isolated studies to create an integrated, data-driven ecosystem, ranging from population mapping to neuroscience and frontline care within the SUS [“Sistema Único de Saúde,” Brazil’s national public health network]. This module will provide the evidence and tools that our policymakers and clinical professionals so desperately need.”

In Brazil, more than 80% of young people with mental health needs do not receive adequate care. The country also lacks representative, national-level epidemiological data necessary to guide effective public policies and service planning, especially in vulnerable communities.

The fourth CISM research module will cover topics ranging from scientific findings from cutting-edge research to the development of an analytical infrastructure, training, and the practical implementation of treatment protocols in 30 specialty medical clinics (AMEs) in the state of São Paulo.

“This partnership represents an important step toward health equity,” emphasizes Zeina Mneimneh, Vice President of Global Epidemiology and Evidence-Based Interventions at the SNF Global Center. “By combining the CISM’s extensive knowledge of the Brazilian public health landscape with the SNF Global Center’s innovative tools and methodologies, we’re developing a scalable model grounded in local realities. Our goal is to generate robust data and effective interventions to transform care for young people in Brazil and create a model for other nations,” she adds.

Epidemiological survey

The CISM is set to launch the first large-scale, population-representative epidemiological survey on youth mental health shortly. This survey will enable the digital assessment of the mental health of 8,000 children and young adults, aged 3 to 24, across the country.

Plans also include creating a Center of Excellence in Data Science and Implementation, which will serve as a hub for training and capacity building for researchers and clinical professionals in Brazil. In the future, it will also serve Mozambique and other countries. The center will enable data integration and the development of advanced methods and analyses, including machine learning, digital biomarkers, and implementation science, as well as innovative scientific research methodologies.

“With that, Brazil will position itself as a leader in equitable data science in mental health, fostering a new generation of researchers in low- and middle-income countries capable of making a significant impact in the field of mental health,” emphasizes Guilherme Polanczyk, coordinator of the new research module and professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at FM-USP.

* With information from Mainary Nascimento of the CISM