Background: In Denmark the incidence of poor mental health is increasing and unevenly distrib-uted, which has social- and individual consequences. Poor mental health has gotten special atten-tion since 2012, when Sundhedsstyrelsen published Forebyggelsespakke - Mental Sundhed 2012. Despite this attention, social inequality in poor mental health is still increasing. This may be due to the complexity of underlying factors in social inequality in poor mental health. Thus, it is im-portant that Sundhedsstyrelsen, with the latest generation of the prevention package, take the complexity into account.
Aim: The purpose of the thesis is to identify existing evidence in relation to the prevention of so-cial inequality in poor mental health, to derive how Forebyggelsespakke - Mental Sundhed 2018 defines and addresses social inequality in poor mental health and how it advises the municipalities in the prevention work of social inequality in poor mental health. This knowledge will contribute to proposals for changing Forebyggelsespakke - Mental Sundhed 2018.
Methods: In this thesis three methods have been used, which in combination with each other an-swer the research question. Systematic literature search was used to find existing evidence on how social inequality in poor mental health can be prevented. A qualitative document analysis of Fore-byggelsespakke - Mental Sundhed 2018 was undertaken to address the understanding framework as well as human and health views, in relation to social inequality in poor mental health. Finally, semi-structured qualitative interviews were used with informants from two different municipali-ties, with the aim of gaining knowledge about the municipalities' use of and experience with Fore-byggelsespakke - Mental Sundhed 2018.
Results: In Forebyggelsespakke - Mental Sundhed 2018 there is an overall fundamentalist health view of poor mental health, and mainly individual-directed initiatives are recommended. Fur-thermore there is an unclear definition of poor mental health as well as a dichotomous and narrow understanding of social inequality in poor mental health. This is also reflected in the municipali-ties' experiences with the prevention of social inequality in poor mental health, where conceptual confusion is seen and an overall work with individual-directed initiatives. In the systematic litera-ture search, it is reflected that political domains form the way in which mental health is defined and that social inequality in poor mental health must be prevented through both distal- and proxi-mal factors.
Conclusion: It can be concluded that Sundhedsstyrelsens addressing of social inequality in poor mental health in FMS18 lacks definitions of social inequality and poor mental health, has an over-all fundamentalist health view, primarily recommends individual-directed initiatives at individu-al-, social- and structural levels and lacks recommendations in relation to recruitment of citizens and unintended consequences. These addressings and recommendations are reflected in the state-ments, the informants in the municipalities, presented in relation to their prevention work of so-cial inequality in poor mental health. Therefore the health authorities must clearly define social inequality and bad mental health, recruitment and unintended consequences, address the outer-most distal levels as well as explain the role that Sundhedsstyrelsen desire to have on the munici-palities' prevention work.