Table 1.

World Health Organization's classification of preventive approaches for mental disorders (adapted from Fusar‐Poli et al ³¹² )

Public health framework	US Institute of Medicine
Primary prevention aims at preventing the new onset (incidence) of one or more mental disorders, or of suicidal ideation.
	Universal prevention targets the general public, or a whole population that has not been identified on the basis of increased risk.
	Selective prevention targets individuals or subgroups of the population whose risk of developing a mental disorder is significantly higher than average, as evidenced by biological, psychological or social risk factors.
	Indicated prevention targets high‐risk people who are identified as having minimal but detectable signs or symptoms foreshadowing mental disorder, or biological markers indicating predisposition for mental disorders, but who do not meet diagnostic criteria for disorder at that time.
Secondary prevention aims to lower the prevalence of established cases of the disorder or illness in the population (prevalence) through early identification and treatment of diagnosable diseases.
Tertiary prevention includes interventions that reduce disability, enhance rehabilitation and prevent relapses or recurrences of the illness.