20% of population suffers from mental health issues – Director

It is estimated that 20 per cent of Guyana’s population suffers from some form of mental health issue, which has been compounded by the COVID-19 global crisis.
Director of the Mental Health Unit, Dr Util Richmond-Thomas made this revelation on Monday, during the launching of a toll-free hotline number titled “Safe Space”, where the public can access assistance.

She related that stigma and discrimination have played their part as hindrances for many persons, preventing them from seeking support or counselling. Data shows that some 50 per cent of individuals with a mental health issue experience their first episode by 14 years of age.
“Due to stigma, discrimination, and severe human rights violation of those afflicted, as well as their family members, a large number of persons prefer not to acknowledge their vulnerability or seek help. But whether we want to admit it or not, the prevalence of mental health issues is approximately 15 to 20 per cent of the population,” the Director emphasised.

Presently, the COVID-19 pandemic has added to the overwhelming impact of mental problems. Dr Richmond-Thomas went on to say that some one in five patients who was infected with the coronavirus would later develop a psychiatric condition.
“One in five people who have COVID-19 are diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder, such as anxiety, depression and insomnia within six months of testing for the virus. The pandemic is one example where physical illness is a stressor that can lead to mental illness,” she noted.

Apart from this, psychosocial stresses are causing an upsurge in the use of alcohol and other substances of abuse, specifically among teenagers. The Mental Health Director shared that persons from dysfunctional homes or those exposed to violence were at risk of developing a mental illness. The list also concludes those suffering from chronic illnesses, poverty, inequality, and workplace stress among others.
“Given the worldwide historical neglect and underfunding of mental health and the mismatched need for services compared to the actual provision of it, and given the emergency of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is expected that the need for mental health and psychosocial support services will increase with the coming months and years. Investment in mental health at this moment is very critical,” Dr Richmond-Thomas highlighted.

She went on to laud the new hotline initiative, which materialised through support from the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and GTT. The toll-free number is 655-7233.
“It will serve as a safe place for persons to discuss feelings and emotions triggered by daily stressors, help persons identify issues which cause emotional distress and help them to develop strategies and solutions to help decrease the severity of their symptoms,” she explained.
Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony has since pledged to ensure that the hotline was properly managed, so that the public could benefit from quality assistance. He said it was even more essential with the high rates of suicide in Guyana’s rural communities.

“We know that if we do it right, it will save a lot of lives…One of the worst things that can happen is that we start this service now and when people call, we have some rude person at the other end of the line. We don’t want that. This is a new thing we are doing and we want the commitment from the staff to ensure that this thing is properly run,” the Health Minister stressed.

While mental health training was offered virtually for health-care workers, he pointed to the need for more such initiatives, since many doctors and nurses were unable to detect mental health cases without training.
“They’re not able to detect persons who have mental health issues. If the prevalence is one in five, then you could imagine how many people are passing through our clinics without being detected. Therefore, we need to do more training like the one we had virtually,” he noted.