First things first - mental health prioritized

First things first – mental health prioritized

Jul 01, 2023 Letters

Dear Editor,

Even as many are ranting about a Commission of Inquiry into the recent Mahdia school fire, our government must be lauded for its ‘first things first’ approach in this regard.

I speak here in relation to the “Mental health training (that was) conducted with Mount Sinai University,” as it seeks to “… to improve the mental health services provided to vulnerable communities…” The joint media reports detailed that the exercise was a collaboration of the Health Ministry’s Mental Health Unit and the New York-based Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and it was dubbed ‘train-the-trainers’ Disaster Mental Health Training, for participants from various communities across Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni). Right off the bat, I am compelled to thank the organisers for this event, as mental health is quite a challenge globally.

Editor, in general, over the past few years, it’s fair to say that most people still don’t have a true understanding of just how big, onerous, and potentially damaging the ‘mental crisis’ really is, on both a societal and personal level.

The numbers simply don’t lie. According to the World Health Organization, around 450 million people currently struggle with mental illness, making it the leading cause of disability worldwide.

Just Imagine!!!!

In Canada, a highly developed country, it affects more than 6.7 million. In fact, one in two Canadians have, or have had, a mental illness by the time they reach 40 years.

Alarming statistics like this only underscore the need for governments to get involved in one way or another.

According to Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony, this training will help healthcare workers in the area to be better able to identify challenges that patients may have, and refer them to professional doctors, so that they can get the necessary care needed. As we all know, early detection of health issues precludes major disasters.

The second thing on my mind is that in the light of the recent Mahdia school fire, the repercussions, mentally, can indeed take a heavy toll on families and community members, and Guyana must act accordingly.

Thus, the government is right in taking the initiative, dispatching several mental health teams in the Region Eight surroundings, where they are offering counselling and mental health assistance.

These local teams comprise psychiatrists, child psychologists, counsellors and social workers, and they were supported by specialised counsellors hailing from Mount Sinai, Southcom Health Clinic, Northwell Health, and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

Finally, let me emphasize that all forms of mental illnesses overall are quite costly to society, as they form the leading causes of disability in many regions of the world, preventing a host of people from attending to basic duties such as work and studies.

In fact, it gets worse, as we think of the reality that the cost that disability leaves (as a result of mental illness) is about double the cost due to physical illness.

At the personal level, many of us do not think of mental illness as something we can die from (in the same way that people die from cancer, heart disease or diabetes), yet the inter-relationship between addictions and other forms of mental illness, and their connection to physical health, is undeniable.

Just look at these findings:

The World Health Organization estimates one person dies by suicide every 40 seconds; People with mood disorders are at much higher risk of developing a long-term medical condition; People with mental illness are two times more likely to have a substance use problem versus the general population; and People with mental illness and addiction are more likely to die prematurely versus the general population. Need I go on?

So then, let us rally around the Health Minister, Dr. Anthony, who disclosed that telemedicine services are now being offered in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni) communities to improve the level of care available to residents.

He stated that “In the affected villages, telemedicine capabilities have been installed to improve and deliver an expanded level of care to those communities. It’s a long road to healing, and we must take the necessary steps towards prevention and control.

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