World Mental Health Day observed: Pakistan faces shortage of mental health professionals

With the theme of 'Living with Schizophrenia', the World Mental Health Day-2014 was observed here on Friday like other parts of the world with a renewed pledge to continue efforts for creation of healthy society by promoting awareness and prevention against diseases, including mental illness.
To mark the day, different health organisations organized functions in which mental health professionals highlighted the challenges being faced by the people with severe mental health problems and what can be done to make their lives better. It may be noted that around 21 million people suffer from schizophrenia, a disorder that affects perception, cognition, behaviour and emotions. Unhealthy lifestyle such as smoking, harmful use of alcohol, poor diet and lack of regular exercise are among the main causes of this disease.
Health professionals maintained that schizophrenia was a major mental disorder that affect on many people. It means "Split mind". In Pakistan, 1 in every 4 person has suffered with mental illness. This mostly consists of schizophrenia, depression and stress. Schizophrenia causes distortion in language, thinking, perception, emotion and behavior. It causes disorganisation of personality, they said.
Addressing a function, leading psychiatrist Dr Abad Ahmed said: "Pakistan is a disaster-prone country; many disasters occur through natural and manmade sources. Every disaster brings physical and mental suffering." He said as per estimates 15-20 percent of the population was suffering from mild-to-moderate psychological illness and most of the sufferers were women. Women in Pakistan mostly face domestic violence; thus, they are suffering different psychological disorders. There are limited number of psychiatrists and clinical psychologists; we calculate one psychiatrist for more than 10,000 people. There is not a single mental health care provider in the rural areas of the country, where 60 percent of the population is living, he said, adding: "Most of the patients, particularly in rural areas, go to traditional faith healers and visit different quacks. There is a serious shortage of mental health professionals in Pakistan and a lack of awareness at all levels."
Dr Abad Ahmed said economists have also realised that the poor mental health was the main reason for a poor growth rate and it led to poor decision-making in all levels. Mental health is not only a health issue; it links with country's economic development, healthy political leadership and an organised social order, he said. According to him, good mental health enables peoples and societies to realize their potentials and increase their choices to live healthy, wealthy and mentally stable lives. This is an unfortunate fact that in Pakistan constant poverty, ongoing stresses, and jobless markets and continuing stressful conditions are major factors for increasing mental illness, he said.
He said when a person under stress and anxiety for long time, there were more chances of it to develop schizophrenia, but due to ignorance in many areas of Pakistan, the relatives of the "hysteria" patient took them to quack for treatment. Proper guidance and treatment, people with psychiatric illness may live and spend normal life. A healthy mind has happiness, contentment, satisfaction and achievement, Dr Abad added.