Many mental health patients ‘at risk’

Valkenberg Hospital is undergoing a massive renovation project worth R900-million. Picture: Thomas Holder

Valkenberg Hospital is undergoing a massive renovation project worth R900-million. Picture: Thomas Holder

Published Jul 15, 2013

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Cape Town - When Sizwe Mthambo (not his real name) of Crossroads was diagnosed with schizophrenia 11 years ago, the first step his family took was to send him to a traditional healer.

“They thought I was possessed and had never heard of the condition. I had never got ill in my life so getting mental illness so suddenly was a shock for everybody… nobody understood it.”

Eventually he was admitted to Valkenberg Psychiatric Hospital. After several episodes Sizwe recovered, even getting a job at a shop through Fountain House, which provides vocational training and skills development to people with disabilities.

Then, more than two years ago Sizwe’s health deteriorated, and he was back in hospital. But a shortage of beds at Somerset Hospital meant he spent a few nights on a chair before one became available. Once, he waited a week and again slept on a chair. For several months he was in and out of hospital as treatment failed.

Cape Mental Health director Ingrid Daniels said many mental health patients in South Africa were not getting essential treatment because of limitations in the public health sector.

Despite rising numbers of mental illness cases, including depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and drug-induced psychosis – psychiatry got inadequate government funding, she said.

Pyschiatry was allocated just four percent of the health budget. This resulted in fewer beds and not enough psychiatrists and psychologists.

In the Western Cape the demand for beds had risen with the increase in drug-induced psychosis, Daniels said.

The provincial health department’s Faiza Steyn said the province was in talks with tertiary institutions to open more mental health training spots, and was allocating more bursaries to nurses specialising in mental health care and psychiatry.

The Cape had 75 psychologists and 92 psychiatrists, including registrars, and about 1 700 psychiatric beds.

Last week Cape Mental Health and Cape Advocacy Body – a group that represents people with mental illness – marched in the city centre to protest about inadequate mental health services and raise awareness about mental illness, as July is Psychiatric Awareness Month.

The advocacy body’s chairman Oscar January said that owing to a shortage of staff at 72-hour observation centres, patients were not treated adequately, so they were discharged before they were completely well.

 

Steyn said: “Most mental illnesses can be treated without hospitalisation. Our district hospitals work very closely with our mental health institutions to ensure patients are treated earlier.”

It was hoped the opening of the Mitchells Plain Hospital this year would boost bed capacity, while a revamped Valkenberg Hospital would raise its capacity from 340 to 432 beds. - Cape Argus

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