Bridging Neurology and NCDs: An Integrated Approach to IGAP Implementation

Date: 20th May, 2025
Venue: Hotel N’vY, 18 rue de Richemont, 1202 Geneva
Moderator: Dr. Orla Galvin (EFNA; OneNeurology)

Including presentation of the OneNeurology Partnership Position Paper for the 2025 UN HLM on NCDs and Mental Health ‘ Ensuring Neurological Conditions are a Distinct Pillar in the NCD Response’ by Dr Coriene Catsman-Berrevoets ( EPNS; OneNeurology Vice Chair).

Background:

In September 2025, world leaders will convene in New York for the 4th UN High-Level Meeting on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) – now expanded to include Mental Health. This meeting arrives at a critical inflection point for global health. Progress on NCDs has been uneven and insufficient: as of 2023, only 19 countries are on track to meet Sustainable Development Goal target 3.4 on NCD mortality reduction​. Meanwhile, new challenges and insights have emerged since the last HLM in 2018. Notably, neurological conditions – long under-recognized in global NCD discussions – have been spotlighted by recent data as a leading cause of global morbidity and mortality​. The World Health Organization’s adoption of the Intersectoral Global Action Plan (IGAP) on Epilepsy and Other Neurological Disorders in 2022 signaled a turning point, affirming that neurological health is integral to the NCD agenda.

Dr. Orla Galvin (EFNA/OneNeurology)

However, current political commitments do not yet fully reflect this reality. The 2018 Political Declaration on NCDs did include an important clause recognizing that “mental disorders and other mental health conditions, as well as neurological disorders, contribute to the global burden of NCDs”​. This was a significant achievement – effectively broadening the NCD focus from the traditional four diseases (cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, diabetes) to a “five-by-five” framework that adds a fifth category of conditions (mental and neurological) and a fifth risk factor (air pollution)​. Yet, in practice, implementation has remained 4×4-dominated: many countries’ NCD strategies still omit neurological disorders, and funding and initiatives for NCDs typically prioritize the original four disease groups. Moreover, the uneven implementation of even the original 4×4 framework has consequences for brain health, as unmanaged risk factors like hypertension, diabetes, and alcohol use contribute to rising rates of stroke, dementia, and other neurological disorders. Preventive care for NCDs such as diabetes, hypertension, and hypercholesterolemia — which are major risk factors for stroke and vascular dementia — remains insufficient in many countries. Strengthening these efforts would not only improve cardiovascular outcomes but also significantly reduce the burden of neurological conditions.

Mental health has started to gain dedicated attention (e.g. the 2020 WHO Mental Health Action Plan extension and the inclusion of mental health in UHC discussions), but neurological conditions are often conflated with or overshadowed by mental health. The OneNeurology Partnership – a collective of global organisations from patient advocates and clinicians to researchers and professional societies – is advocating for the 2025 HLM to explicitly address this gap. We call on Member States to make neurological conditions a clear priority in the Political Declaration and ensuing actions, distinct from but complementing mental health efforts.

This position paper outlines the rationale, proposed language, and recommendations to achieve that goal. It draws on the language of previous UN political declarations (2018 NCDs, 2019/2023 UHC, etc.), WHO’s IGAP and toolkit, the NCD Alliance’s 2025 recommendations, and inputs from the global neurology and mental health advocacy communities. We aim to equip negotiators and decision-makers with concrete text and evidence to elevate neurology within the NCD narrative, ultimately improving outcomes for billions of people and advancing the 2030 Agenda. The position paper can be read in full here.

Panelists:

• Chris Lynch (Deputy CEO and Director of Policy and Communications ADI; OneNeurology Partner)
• Dr. Tarun Dua (Head of the Brain Health Unit,WHO)
• Joanna Laurson-Doube (Policy and Advocacy Manager NCD Alliance)
• Dr. Muhannad Almughthim (General Manager, Professional Practice Standards Saudi Commission for Health Specialities)

Left to right: Joanna Laurson-Doube (NCD Alliance), Dr. Tarun Dua (WHO), Dr. Muhannad Almughthim (Saudi Commission for Health Specialities), Chris Lynch (Alzheimer’s Disease International)

Starting at the global level long term brain health advocate Dr. Tarun Dua highlighted the risk factors for NCDs are aligned with those for neurological conditions and tackling these issues supports the strategic objective of the IGAP focused on prevention of neurological conditions where possible and promotion of good brain health practices. Ongoing the WHO is urging governments to support data generation for Neurology and will launch a paper on global neurology data later this year.

Moving to the broader NCD agenda Joanna Laurson-Doube indicated that progress for NCDs has been off track, however there is opportunity for that to change at the UN HLM on NCDs and mental health. This includes naming neurological conditions as a priority NCD. The NCD Alliance have advocated for and promoted the inclusion of people with lived experience, this was evidence from their input at the Multistakeholder Hearing on NCDs and Mental Health. You can read and endorse their global charter for the meaningful involvement of people living with NCDs here: Global Charter | Our Views, Our Voices

At national level we heard exemplary action points and progressive strategies from Dr. Muhannad Almughthim. He addressed the urgent gaps in the workforce inclusive of the urban rural divide, and provided insights to solution orientated task-sharing integrated care such as the requirement for care teams not only a singular physician, and training in neurology for non-neurologists- a practice that which had the room nodding in agreement. Taking a system wide approach Dr Muhannad Almughthim also addressed the role of academic institutions in strengthening and safeguarding the future health of a nation.

Addressing condition specific needs, we then heard from Chris Lynch and the work of Alzheimer’s Disease International. A major achievement we can now report is the extension of the Global action plan on dementia until 2031 which now aligns with the timeline for the IGAP on epilepsy and other neurological conditions. Chris emphasised that the extension would serve to encourage countries to fulfil the commitments to the plan. A fresh perspective to share with governments are the opportunities for risk reduction ( read savings!) and we eagerly anticipate the revised risk factors for demetia that the WHO will publish later this year. Stigma was raised by all speaker and within ADI’s report ‘ From Plan to Impact’ awareness, friendliness and addressing caregivers should be top priorities for governments from a public health perspective. Interesting times ahead for the ADI community with the uptake of novel diagnostics identifying risk much earlier and approval of new therapeutics we hope for a mindset shift for the AD community and towards the AD community and the by extension the broader neurology community.