Ministry to bring mental health care closer to people

Ministry of Health says it is moving towards having mental health services in all the country’s health centres.

Ministry of Health chief of health services Queen Dube said this on Thursday in Lilongwe when she and some officials appeared before the Parliamentary Committee on Health.

The officials sought to explain efforts being made in fighting mental health issues which have of late risen.

Dube told the committee that there is a need for trained health personnel in all health facilities to help tackle issues of mental health.

She expressed worry that the problem is also affecting children who reach to the point of committing suicide.

Said Dube: “It is saddening that a small child is able to think of taking away his or her life.

“You wonder how they even know how to use a rope to commit suicide.”

She said the ministry is now working on a strategy to ensure that people access mental health care easily.

Parliamentary Committee on Health member Owen Chomanika, who chaired the meeting, commended the Ministry of Health for taking steps in fighting mental health.

“As a committee, we were concerned with the recent reported high cases of suicide and mental illness. So we called the ministry to discuss the issue,” he said.

Currently, the country is struggling with mental health issues and there are several factors associated with the challenge.

Malawi Police Service data shows that the country registered 116 suicides from January to August 2019 and 182 cases in the same period in 2020.

This year, 87 suicides have been recorded from January to June.