GB-HESA-0163-NIHR200846 University of Warwick Slum populations in low- and-middle-income countries (LMICs) have high rates of serious and enduring mental illness (SMI – psychotic disorders and severe mood disorders, often with co-occurring substance abuse) and very poor access to mental health care. Sufferers and their families choose traditional and faith-based practices since these are more accessible, considered affordable, and are in tune with their cultural beliefs and traditions. Faith-based and traditional healing can play an important part in delivering care in LMICs, especially for common mental disorders like anxiety and depression, but those with SMI require additional biomedical treatment and follow-up. The TRANSFORM project aims to improve access to care and outcomes of SMI in slums, by developing an innovative collaborative care model involving traditional/faith healers, mental health professionals, primary care practitioners and community health workers (CHWs). This multidisciplinary research programme will be conducted across two slum communities, one each in Dhaka, Bangladesh and Ibadan, Nigeria (both ODA-eligible countries). We will conduct in-depth studies to understand local communities' awareness and understanding of SMIs and sit with traditional and faith healers to understand who seeks care, how care is given and how healers identify and could refer those with treatable SMI to medical care. We will develop an understanding of the explanatory models of illness and care in relation to SMIs from the perspectives of community members, healers and health professionals. Based on these findings, we will develop two training packages, one for healers and one for CHWs, focused on identification, referral to local psychiatric services and ongoing support for patients (18+) with SMIs. We will evaluate the effectiveness of the training programmes in increasing referrals to and the provision of community mental health care of cases of SMI, and conduct a cost-effectiveness analysis of the intervention and its outcomes. The University of Ibadan Telepsychiatry Research and Innovation Network-TRIN The Creative Gypsy University of Birmingham No cost extension awarded. Project start activity was delayed due to COVID-19 pandemic. University of Warwick Warwick Medical School Professor Swaran Singh Professor s.p.singh@warwick.ac.uk University of Warwick Warwick Medical School Simon Smith Senior Project Manager s.j.smith@warwick.ac.uk University of Warwick (49.02%) and University of Birmingham (0.44%) Telepsychiatry Research and Innovation Network Ltd University of Ibadan, College of Medicine. Creative Gypsy An effective model for expanding access to mental health care for people with severe mental illness (SMI) living in slum communities—who collectively number over one billion globally—has the potential to deliver transformative benefits for individuals, families, and wider communities. By reducing the substantial treatment gap for SMI in low- and middle-income countries, this initiative will make a meaningful contribution to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 3 The WHO Comprehensive Mental Health Action plan 2013-2030 recognised that globally, between 76% and 85% of people with severe mental disorders receive no treatment for their disorder in low-income and middle-income countries. The action plan relies on six cross-cutting principles and approaches and aligns with UN Sustainable Goal 3. TRANSFORM aims to improve access to care and outcomes of SMI for the populations who live in slum communities. Budgets in Nigeria, Bangladesh and India 998292.57 1021109.99 1041176.55 994195.18 If the contractor does not deliver the proposed body of research, and the funding provided is no longer counted as ODA by the OECD, then the contractor must pay back the amount that the OECD says does not qualify as ODA. The contractor is contracted to provide annual written reports, a final written report, quarterly finance reports, and quarterly reports against milestones. The contractor must also provide a report of outputs. Th contractor will put in place with each Collaborator participating in the Research, a Collaboration Agreement. The Contractor shall ensure that: (i) each Collaborator is obliged to comply with or fulfil requirements that are the same as or equivalent to the relevant provisions of this Contract; and (ii) each Collaborator accepts and will comply with the IP Policy.