Service Infrastructure for Mental Health Needs Improvement

KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI

A number of patients with mental disorders line up after undergoing a PCR swab test at the Bina Insan Bangun Daya 2 Social Institution, Cipayung, East Jakarta, Monday (23/8/2021).

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — An improvement in mental health services in the country is urgently needed. One of the efforts to increase access to these services is empowering primary health facilities to do the task. However, the limited number of mental health personnel has hampered such programs.

In a written statement to commemorate World Mental Health Day last weekend, Poonam Khetrapal Singh, the regional director of the World Health Organization’s South-East Asia Region (WHO SEARO) called on countries in the WHO SEARO working area to strengthen mental health services.

“The majority of the people living with mental health problems in the low- and middle-income countries do not get adequate treatment,” said Poonam.

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Therefore, she encouraged these countries to provide comprehensive mental health services, especially in primary health facilities.

When contacted on Tuesday (12/10/2021), the director of Prevention and Control of Mental Health and Drug Problems at the Health Ministry, Celestinus Eigya Munthe, said that the limited human resources had hampered the existing mental health services.

We will try to increase the number of mental health facilities.

Currently, out of 10,500 health centers in Indonesia, only 6,000 health centers have the capacity to provide mental health services. In addition, six provinces in the country still do not yet have mental hospitals. “We will try to increase the number of mental health facilities. It is targeted that by 2023 all Puskesmas (community health centers) will be able to provide mental health services," Celestinus said.

For the short term, Celestinus said, a number of health workers at the Puskesmas had been trained, and also trained to improve their competence in dealing with mental health problems.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

The queue of patients with mental disorders (ODGJ) to receive the Covid-19 vaccine injection at the Basudewa Pavilion, Dr. Marzoeki Mahdi Hospital, Bogor City, West Java, Tuesday (1/6/2021).

The head of the Surakarta City Health Office, Siti Wahyuningsih, said her office had made efforts to provide mental health services at all Puskesmas in the city. A number of mental health workers had also been prepared to conduct early detection of mental disorders in every sub-district, she added. It is part of the program to improve the access to mental health services for the community.

The 2018 Basic Health research shows that more than 19 million people over the age of 15 suffered mental and emotional disorders, with more than 12 million people over the age of 15 also suffering from depression.

According to clinical psychologist Jaya Edward Andriyanto, a member of the Indonesian Psychological Association (Himpsi), there was an urgent need to strengthen mental health facilities given the increase in mental health problems around the country. The telecounseling or teletherapy services that emerged during the Covid-19 pandemic can only be accessed in areas that have a stable internet connection.

Transformation

Meanwhile, a psychiatrist at the Marzoeki Mahdi Hospital in Bogor Lahargo Kembaren, also a member of Himpsi, is of the opinion that, in the long term, primary health facilities should be transformed so they would be able to carry out promotive and preventive activities related to mental health.

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A number of efforts that also need to be taken are the transformation of referral services; the mental health resilience system, particularly related to the availability of drugs and medical devices; the mental health financing system so that the people will not be burdened and the strengthening of health technology.

According to the president of the Federation of Asian Oceanian Neuroscience Societies, Adhi Wibowo Nurhidayat, services and infrastructure facilities should be further improved, in addition to paying attention to healthy people who are vulnerable and people who are already experiencing mental health problems. (TAN/NCA/SKA/ADH)

This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi.