This year's World Mental
Health Day theme reaffirmed the need to ensure that everyone has access to mental
health care. Making this a reality is everyone's responsibility. The effects of
the COVID19 pandemic can be felt in all walks of life and especially in
people's mental health. Many services have been discontinued, including mental
illness, neurological disorders, and substance use disorders. People with
pre-existing mental illnesses were severely affected because they were unable
to access these services in their entirety.
Despite all these events, we
are sure that there is still hope. This has led to the need to improve the
quality of mental health services provided at all levels throughout the world.
Many countries still need to develop resources to expand this, but it appears
that some countries have found new ways to provide mental health care to their
populations.
According to the World
Federation for Mental Health, the theme of this year's campaign was to
highlight that access to mental health services remains uneven. More than
three-quarters of people with mental disorders in low- and middle-income
countries have no access to mental health services at all, and access is not
much better in other countries. Lack of investment in mental health that is
disproportionate to the overall health budget contributes to the mental health
treatment gap.
Research has shown that the quality
of care for people with mental health problems is poor. Stigma and
discrimination against people with mental illness not only affect their
physical and mental health, but also affect educational opportunities, current
and future income and job prospects, families and loved ones. It can take up to
15 years for patients who need this quality of care in daily practice to
receive medical, social and psychological treatments for mental illness that
have been proven in high quality research studies.
‘Mental Health in an Unequal
World’ campaign will allow us to focus on the issues that led to inequality in
mental health locally and globally. This inequality must be addressed because
it should not persist. We all have a role to play in addressing these
inequalities and ensuring that people with lived experiences of mental health
are fully integrated into all aspects of life. Civil societies should be
supported in playing an active role in tackling inequality in their local
areas, while researchers should be encouraged to share their knowledge about
mental health inequalities, including practical ideas on how to address them.
As we are in the midst of a
global crisis that is increasing health, economic and social inequalities, this
campaign is an opportunity for us to come together and act together to show how
inequality can be addressed to ensure that people are enjoying good mental
health.
