Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital staff and the public during the World Mental Health Day in 2016. PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA | NMG
As the Kenyan society evolves and transitions towards a
developed nation’s, a shifting mental health epidemiology pattern is
being noted. Its acceleration by a formalising economy, socio-cultural
changes and weakening traditional “support values” are all contributing
to higher incidents of mental health disorder.
The
World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates 25 per cent of the world’s
population to be affected by a mental or neurological condition. The
latter, though not directly a mental illness, is associated with higher
risk of developing the former.
Citing WHO data, Mary
Wahome from Reason to Hope, a non-profit organisation advocating mental
health service improvement, says that globally about 10 per cent of the
population at any given time suffer from a mental disorder and that 20
per cent or thereabouts of all primary health care professional visits
have a component of mental disorders.
This coupled
with substance abuse and psychological effects of chronic diseases,
makeup 15 per cent of Disability-Adjusted Life Years, a measure of
productive man-hours lost due to illnesses.
She says good mental health is a state of well-being where
individuals recognise and realise their abilities, cope with stresses of
life, work productively and fruitfully while also contributing to their
communities. This must also include one’s emotions, cognition, social
functioning and coherence.
Though local data on the
prevalence of mental health conditions is not readily available, doctors
are starting to collect it. Looking at our demographics, the rates may
get higher especially amongst the youth and elderly groups. The mid-aged
workers are also not left out as they grapple with achieving
work-life-family balance, taxing daily commutes, substance abuse and
addictive disorders. The last two, in particular, are emerging threats.
Reason
to Hope’s experience shows that the most frequent diagnosis of mental
illnesses made in general hospital settings is depression, substance
abuse, stress and anxiety disorders. By their very aetiology, mental
disorders increase the risk of getting ill from other diseases such as
HIV, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and vice-versa. They also pose
risk for unintentional and intentional injury to self and the public.
Sadly
there seems to be a huge deficit in terms of personnel and resources
available to tackle mental health disorders. Psychiatrists, psychologist
and counsellors are very few and not integrated into routine hospital
setups. This mismatch Ms Wahome says is unfortunate since the WHO and
the Ministry of Health all acknowledge mental health as a critical and
equal component to the physical and social aspects of being “healthy”.
From
her observations, people living with serious mental illness are at
higher risk of experiencing a wide range of chronic physical conditions.
Conversely, people living with chronic physical health conditions are
at higher risks of depression and anxiety.
Her recommendation is that mental health services be integrated into healthcare and not left out.
Feedback: email: info@healthinfo.co.ke | Twitter: @healthinfoK
No comments :
Post a Comment