YOUR MIND MATTERS: DOH CALLS FOR UNIFIED RESPONSE TO

MENTAL HEALTH

Press Release | 10 October 2020

With the pandemic having a considerable impact on global mental health,

the Department of Health (DOH) today called for a unified response to
improve mental health care in the country in observance of this year’s
World Mental Health Day.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mental and behavioral

disorders account for about 14% of the global burden of disease and as
many as 450 million people suffer from these illnesses. The Philippine
WHO Special Initiative for Mental Health conducted in the early part of
2020 shows that at least 3.6 million Filipinos suffer from one kind of mental,
neurological, and substance use disorder.

Moreover, the pandemic has further impacted mental health in groups such
as older adults, health care providers, and people with underlying health
conditions.

“There is less than one mental health worker for every 100,000 Filipinos,
and many are currently unable to gain access to services,” said Health
Secretary Francisco T. Duque III. He added that mental health is a serious
matter and cannot be left unattended. There is nothing to be ashamed of
when it comes to taking better care of one’s mental health, and we need to
make a concerted effort at all levels if we are to help people with these
conditions.
This year’s theme “Mental Health for All: Unifying Voices for Greater
Investment and Access,” seeks to drive the conversation on some of the
challenges that the mental health care system faces, such as negative
perceptions and limited funding commitment. While support for mental
health has gained momentum in the Philippines, Duque noted that a
stronger push is needed to address the issue given the effects of the
pandemic.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has evoked overwhelming reactions and

emotions from people. Many have had their livelihoods affected, others are
worried about keeping their families safe. There are many reasons why we
need to take extra care now when it comes to mental health,” said Duque.
“We hope that by raising more awareness on the urgency of this issue, we
can inspire more commitment towards helping those in need.”

The United Nations policy brief on COVID-19 and the need for action on
mental health states that good mental health is critical to the functioning of
society at the best of times. According to Duque, improving service
delivery capability and ensuring greater access both need substantial
investment in terms of infrastructure, manpower, and resources.

The Health Secretary further noted that while the mandates provided by the
Mental Health Act and the Universal Health Care Law help give the country
enough leverage to ensure that mental health services will be given
paramount importance, there is an urgent need for more assistance.

“Mental health is a human right, it’s time that mental health be made
available for all. Quality, accessible primary health care is the foundation
for universal health coverage and is urgently required as the world grapples
with the current health emergency,” said Duque. “We need to make mental
health a reality for all – for everyone, everywhere,” he stressed.

For this year’s observance of National Mental Health Week, various

activities to promote more awareness and understanding of mental health,
such as webinars and daily mental cleanse challenges, are being
conducted across the Philippines as part of a collaborative effort between
the government, private sector, civil society, and various other stakeholders
and partners. The WHO will also launch its Quality Rights online platform,
which provides comprehensive information on the rights of persons with
mental health issues, so that the public can take greater care.

“Unifying the voices of all stakeholders and advocates is needed so that

everyone can share in investing time and effort for mental health,” said
Duque. “At a time that the world collectively endured the most challenging
year by far, addressing mental health concerns has become more vital and
pressing. Forging partnerships and uniting our voices to call on more
stakeholders and policymakers to increase investment in mental health is
our best chance at dealing with this task at hand,” the health chief
concluded.
2. The article that I just read was indeed a good one. It’s good that they
finally are giving attention to one of the most common but life-ruining
problems that the entire world is facing. The article is timely. It may be
more than a year old but it still counts since it was made during the
pandemic when the people’s mental health was beginning to deteriorate.

3. If I were the DOH secretary in charge of addressing Mental Health

issues, I would do it in a way where it would attract the attention of those
who know people suffering from mental health issues, or- even better-
attract the attention of those who are suffering from mental health issues. I
would also suggest addressing the ways on how to improve their mental
state without the help of others, because majority of the people suffering
from mental health issues are young adults and teenagers who are still
learning about the world and are welcomed into adulthood with a global-
spreading virus. People around this age are very uncomfortable sharing
how they feel and would rather keep their mental state to themselves, so as
far as I’m concerned, sharing tips on how to improve their mental health
with the need of others is often useless.

4. Addressing mental health issues is highly needed because studies say

that:

• People, especially nowadays, are slowly losing their sanity due to

anxiety over this pandemic
• Depression has been on the rise ever since we needed to limit the
number of hours we stay outside and communicate with our friends
and loved ones
• Cases of schizophrenia have been increasing due to the unhealthy
environment and the lack of physical communication with others
• Majority of the students have been having eating disorders due to the
stress and overwhelming schoolwork that are given to them
• Almost everyone has been finding ways to entertain themselves while
staying indoors but have developed addictive behaviors instead of
just pasttime or just a plain distraction from their problems