[NYAPRS Enews] WHO: People With Mental Disabilities Cannot Be Forgotten

[Harvey Rosenthal]

People With Mental Disabilities Cannot Be Forgotten

Medical News Today  September 19, 2010   

People with mental and psychosocial disabilities are among the most
marginalized groups in developing countries. Even though development
actors have pledged to focus their work on the most vulnerable in a
community, many programmes continue to ignore and exclude this
vulnerable group. 

New report on mental health and development 
This is the message of a new World Health Organization (WHO) report on
mental health and development - Targeting people with mental health
conditions as a vulnerable group - which is being launched today at the
United Nations in New York. 
According to the report, the majority of development and poverty
alleviation programmes do not reach persons with mental or psychosocial
disabilities. For example, between 75% and 85% do not have access to any
form of mental health treatment. Mental and psychosocial disabilities
are associated with rates of unemployment as high as 90%. Furthermore
people are not provided with educational and vocational opportunities to
meet their full potential. 
"A greater attention from the development community is needed to reverse
this situation", says Dr Ala Alwan, Assistant Director-General for
Non-Communicable Diseases and Mental Health at WHO. "The lack of
visibility, voice and power of people with mental and psychosocial
disabilities means that an extra effort needs to be made to reach out to
and involve them more directly in development programmes." 

Mental health conditions responsible for a great deal of mortality and
disability 
The challenge is enormous. An estimated one in four people globally will
experience a mental health condition in their lifetime. Mental health
conditions are responsible for a great deal of mortality and disability,
accounting for 8.8% and 16.6% of the total burden of disease due to
health conditions in low- and middle-income countries, respectively.
Depression will be the second highest cause of disease burden in
middle-income countries and the third highest in low income countries by
2030. 

How to address the specific needs of people with mental and psychosocial
disabilities 
The report calls for development actors to address the needs of people
with mental and psychosocial disabilities in development work by: 
- recognizing the vulnerability of this group and including them in all
development initiatives, 
- scaling up services for mental health in primary care; 
- including people in income generating programmes and providing social
and disability benefits, 
- involving people themselves in the design of development programmes
and projects; 
- incorporating human rights protections in national policies and laws; 
- including children and adolescents with mental and psychosocial
disabilities in education programmes; and 
- improving social services for people with mental and psychosocial
disabilities. 
WHO is working jointly with the UN Department of Economic and Social
Affairs (UNDESA) in order to integrate mental health into the
development agenda and programmes at national level. 
"We need to break down the barriers that continue to exclude persons
with mental or psychosocial disabilities" says Mr Sha Zukang,
Under-Secretary General of UNDESA. "In order for them to have access to
better opportunities and to benefit from the fruits of development, they
must also be involved in the design of policies and programmes related
to development." 
The WHO report stresses that investing in people with mental health
conditions, development outcomes can be improved. Mental health priority
conditions include depression, psychoses, suicide, epilepsy, dementia,
conditions due to the use of alcohol and drugs and mental health
conditions in children. 

Source: WHO 

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/201645.php 

 

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