By Raveen Jeyakumar
Several weaknesses in the Malaysian healthcare system make it difficult to tackle mental health problems in the country.
A technical report released by the Ministry of Health (MoH) in December 2017 revealed that 29.2% of adults (aged 16 and above) – almost one in three adults – and 12.1% of children in Malaysia experience mental health problems.
This makes it the second largest health problem, after heart disease, plaguing people in Malaysia.
A national health and morbidity study in 2019 showed that almost half a million people in the country experience depression.
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With the added pressure – in terms of health, mental and financial aspects – brought upon by the prolonged Covid lockdowns and restrictions, these figures surely would have worsened in the past three years.
Such alarming data shows that the country does not take mental health seriously enough. The healthcare system has several weaknesses:
- The country has not enough psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and counsellors
- To make matters worse, many of them are based in Penang and Kuala Lumpur. This causes a lot of inconvenience for patients in other states and places who need mental health services and treatment
- Too few psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and counsellors work in the public sector. This burdens the low-income group, who cannot afford to turn to the private sector for mental health services
- Medications for treating mental health conditions are too expensive, especially for low-income patients
- Many people lack awareness and information about mental health and hold negative, stereotyped views. As a result, many with mental health problems are too ashamed to seek help
The government should take the following measures through the relevant ministries and departments to tackle this pressing issue:
1. Encourage more psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and counsellors to serve in the public sector. This will help those in the low-income group to gain access to affordable mental health services throughout the country (and not just in Penang and KL). The MoH should raise the wages and benefits for government specialists so that they will remain instead of moving to the private sector
2. Extend higher education courses in psychiatry, clinical psychology and counselling to all higher education institutes in Malaysia to increase the number of such graduates joining the workforce
3. Provide financial help or subsidies for mental healthcare services to ease the financial burden on low-income patients
4. Ensure that every local health clinic in every town in Malaysia has at least one psychiatrist, given the seriousness of mental health problems in society
5. Launch a nationwide campaign through the media to change society’s negative perceptions and stereotypes towards mental health diseases and those suffering from mental health problems
6. Provide mental health education at secondary and tertiary education levels to raise awareness among the youth of how important mental healthcare is for the welfare and progress of society
Sound mental health is every individual’s right. A country can only progress if its government commits to tackling and managing mental health issues in society.
The government should prioritise tackling mental health problems and take proactive measures to ensure the wellbeing of the people.
Raveen Jeyakumar, an Aliran volunteer, is a 29-year-old based in Ipoh with an interest in social and environmental issues
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