Reps decry growing cases of mental illness in Nigeria

The House of Representatives has mandated its Committees on Health Institutions and Healthcare Services to liaise with the Federal Ministry of Health in the direction of enhancing mental health facilities throughout Nigeria and increase out “serious” sensitisation of Nigerians on intellectual health.

The House additionally mandated the Committee on Health Institution to discover the modalities of liaising with stakeholders in the health region to promote, train and sensitise Nigerians on mental health, and report back within six weeks for further legislative action.

A member of the House, Uchechukwu Nnam-Obi, moved a motion at the plenary on Thursday, titled ‘Need to Address the Rising Cases of Mental Health in Nigeria,’ which the lawmakers unanimously adopted.

According to him, the World Health Organisation considers mental health as a state of wellbeing in which the individual can cope with the stress of life, work productively and make a contribution to the community.

The lawmaker cited that mental illness manifests in mood disorder, nervousness disorder, trauma-related disorder, character disorder, historic age-related disorder, substance abuse sickness or mental sample that causes massive misery or impairment of personal functioning.

He mentioned WHO files as saying over 20 million Nigerians are nowadays struggling from a range of intellectual sickness or disorder barring psychiatric health care.

Nnam-Obi said, “The House observes that three out of 10 Nigerians have one form of mental sickness or the other, and in modern times there is no mental fitness regulation in Nigeria. However, the Nigerian mental fitness coverage is the solely framework that has get right of entry to to mental healthcare, dealing with mental and neurological disorders in Nigeria, discouraging stigmatisation in opposition to men and girls with mental problems and has institutionalised necessities for psychiatric practice;

“The House is worried that the amplify in instances of melancholy is traceable to multi-factorial inter and intrapersonal troubles which leads to suicidal loss of life in the united states and this requires urgent attention.

“The House is also worried that Nigeria has totally a hundred thirty psychiatrists with over 20 million residents struggling from intellectual disorders.

“The House is concerned that with the few purposeful mental fitness services and insufficient mental health practitioners in the country, mental health instances are left for general practitioners, subsequently the upsurge in mental fitness in Nigeria.

“The House is moreover worried that the data are troubling and the persevered lack of a legal framework on intellectual health in the country will honestly motivate the situation to degenerate.”