Victims of neglect

Mental health is a global problem, with one in every eight people living with a mental disorder. Nepalis are also increasingly besieged by the most common mental health conditions like anxiety and depression. As per the National Health Survey 2022, in Nepal, 22 percent women and 11 percent men aged 15-49 have anxiety, while 5 percent women and 2 percent men have depression. What’s worse, Nepal Police data reveals 6,792 people died by suicide in the fiscal year 2021-22, which comes to over over 18 daily deaths.

Nepal’s lack of mental health workers speaks volumes about the government’s negligence of this all-important issue. According to reports, many state-run health facilities in the country neither have mental health experts nor highly specialised clinical psychologists who can diagnose mental ailments. Moreover, a 2021 assessment by WHO shows a worrying shortage of psychologists—with only 0.1 for every 100,000 people (and only two psychologists in total in the state-run healthcare facilities).

reference:

https://kathmandupost.com/editorial/2023/07/28/victims-of-neglect