WMH: Agbonile Calls for Proactive Steps To Stop Decline

The need for take proactive steps to prevent further deterioration of the mental health of citizens as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic ravaging the world has been stressed.

Newly appointed Medical Director of the Federal Neuro-psychiatric hospital, Uselu, Benin City, Dr Imafidon Agbonile stated this in an interview as the world marks the 2020 World Mental Health day.

The World Mental Health Day was observed for the first time on 10 October 1992, as an annual activity of the World Federation for Mental Health by the then Deputy Secretary General Richard Hunter.

Speaking on this year’s theme for the day, “Mental health for all”, Dr Agbonile said that it is apt and appropriate in the light  of the pandemic’s direct and indirect, serious and widespread consequences on the world.

The Covid-19 has put the whole world into a crisis situation: financial crisis; the whole world is in recession, millions are out of jobs, companies are shutting down, so you can imagine the mental issues”.

He said, “This is the best time to have such a theme and that awareness should be brought to the fore. All hands must be on deck to deal with the situation as it is, because if you do not have mental health you do not have complete health”.

Dr Agbonile lamented the dearth of Mental Health Doctors in Nigeria and at a time the few ones in the country are leaving the country in droves, for greener pastures abroad.

There are about 100 psychiatrists in Nigeria to feal with pvet 50million mental health cases, according to the WHO and many of them can be found only in medical schools and hospitals, while majority are abroad.

” Unfortunately this problem is increasing by the day. People are going abroad to practice in the UK, Canada and the Middle East. And the insecurity, no electricity, conditions of service in the country is not making things easy”.

He added, “In the theoretical model for Brain drain, you have the push and pull factors. The pull factors are greener pastures, better pay, better working conditions and tools to work. Then the push factors, which are compounding the situation include no electricity, insecurity, poor conditions of service, poor work environment”.

Meanwhile Dr Agbonile has blamed the increasing frequency of suicide which puts Nigeria in position number 15 in the global index by the World Health Organization, WHO, on the current hardship in the country.

He said, ” Many are facing financial crisis, relationship crisis, social crisis, some are living in perpetual fear like those in the Northeastern parts; no jobs, people cannot marry even when they are of marriageable age – they don’t have the means! For the women they are looking at the biological clock”.

Dr Agbonile said in these conditions many are vulnerable to committing suicide as they become hopeless, feeling that there is nothing in this world, they lack the capacity to enjoy anything and believe the only way out is to take their lives.#