Johannesburg - World Mental Health Day, celebrated on October 10, provides an opportunity to talk about mental health issues and what more needs to be done to make mental health care a reality for people worldwide.
South Africa joined the global community to commemorate World Mental Health Day to raise awareness of mental health issues around the world and to mobilise efforts in support of mental health.
The National Department of Health (NDoH) said stigma and discrimination are some of the leading contributing factors that exacerbate the situation and delay or stop mental health patients from getting help.
“The department appeals to family and community members to play a key role in providing significant support and care to persons suffering from mental illness/psychological distress,” the department said.
The NDoH said, in South Africa, the most common mental health disorders include anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress and substance use disorders.
The department said South Africa spends 5% of the total health budget on mental health services. According to the latest available data, most countries spend about 2.13% of their total health budgets on mental health.
“As part of the efforts to decentralise mental health services, which historically were provided only in specialised psychiatric hospitals, the department has been integrating mental health into general health services, environment in line with the Mental Health Care Act, 2002, to ensure that people access mental health services nearer to where they stay or work,” the NDoH said.
Over 40 mental health/psychiatric units have been attached to general hospitals across the country.
The department said units provide comprehensive mental health care, treatment and rehabilitation on an inpatient and outpatient basis and refer to specialised psychiatric hospitals only those who need more specialised and complex interventions.
It added the department, working with provinces, has contracted 126 private specialists, including psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, occupational therapists and registered counsellors, to complement the already available staff and provide mental health services at primary health care and also conduct mental observations as part of interventions to fast track mental observations in terms of the Criminal Procedure’s Act.
The Star