• The survey, by the World Health Organization, shows critical funding gaps are halting and disrupting crucial mental health services in Africa.
• African countries account for 15 of the top 30 countries globally for suicide per 100, 000 people.
Image: STAR ILLUSTRATED
Kenya is among countries facing funding constraints for mental health services as demand rises sharply due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
A survey by the World Health Organization shows critical funding gaps are halting and disrupting crucial mental health services in Africa.
The survey of 28 African countries was undertaken as part of the first global examination of the devastating impact of Covid-19 on access to mental health services.
It underscores the urgent need for increased funding. Of the countries responding in the African region, 37 per cent reported that their Covid-19 mental health response plans are partially funded and a further 37 per cent reported having no funds at all.
This finding comes as the Covid-19 pandemic increases demand for mental health services.
“Isolation, loss of income, the deaths of loved ones and a barrage of information on the dangers of this new virus can stir up stress levels and trigger mental health conditions or exacerbate existing ones,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has shown, more than ever, how mental health is integral to health and well-being and must be an essential part of health services during outbreaks and emergencies.”
African countries account for 15 of the top 30 countries globally for suicide per 100,000 people.
In Kenya, WHO data estimates that 1,408 people commit suicide yearly, or simply put, four deaths daily.
While there is scant data on how Covid-19 is increasing mental health conditions on the African continent, one study in South Africa found that 10–20 per cent of the 220 people surveyed reported potent experiences of anxiety and fear as a result of the pandemic.
Another survey of 12,000 women in low-income communities in Uganda and Zambia found an increase in persistent stress, anxiety and depression.
The WHO assessment of mental health services took place in July and August 2020 and 27 of the 28 African nations which responded have included mental health in their Covid-19 response plans, underscoring the growing recognition of the importance of this once neglected area of health.
In Africa, substance use disorder services were the mental health services facing the biggest disruptions. The main causes for the disruptions were due to patients failing to turn up, travel restrictions hindering access to health facilities and a decrease in patient volume due to cancellations of elective care.
While at the global level, up to 70 per cent of countries have responded to the challenges posed by Covid-19 with telemedicine, in Africa governments have set up counselling helplines and increased training for key health responders in basic psychosocial skills.
Even before the pandemic, the region had one of the lowest mental health public expenditure rates, at less than US$ 10 cents per capita.
With increasing pressure on health systems and rising demand, stretched and chronically underfunded mental health services are under increasing strain.