Crossing boundaries to improve mental health in the Americas: international collaborative authorship.

A nurse anthropologist with a background in international collaborations attended Project LEAD for two years, which enabled her to continue to serve as an advocate for the mentally ill in Belize. The anthropologist collaborated with a psychiatrist from Belize to develop a cross-cultural, cross-discipline publication, "Mental Health in Belize: A National Priority, " which highlights the work of psychiatric nurse practitioners in the country. The researcher learned to collaborate with her peer in Belize through face to face discussions and e-mail and overcame technological difficulties and cultural barriers to produce an international publication. Project LEAD gave the author a sense of self-discovery and self-knowledge, reinforced core values, and developed a frame of reference for leadership. The author also benefited from discussions by local, national, and international leaders on leadership in terms of its key components, contexts, challenges, triumphs, and styles.