PETALING JAYA: Mental health experts have welcomed the government’s allocation of RM24 million for mental health programmes in the 2021 budget proposals tabled last Friday.
The heads of the Malaysian Mental Health Association (MMHA) and London College of Clinical Hypnosis (LCCH) Asia say it is good of Putrajaya to openly address mental health matters and offer assistance towards the people’s psychological wellbeing.
“Although it is a modest allocation, it is an indication of the government’s seriousness in prioritising these problems,” said MMHA president Dr Andrew Mohanraj.
While Mohanraj supported the government’s plans on improving physical abuse prevention and substance abuse, he said there should also be focus on setting up more mental health helplines and public awareness campaigns.
He also hoped that money would be channelled to NGOs as many mental health initiatives were in need of “significant and sustainable support”.
However, he said he was surprised by the nearly 10% decrease in the health ministry’s allocation for its psychiatry and mental health services, despite the government noting the prevalence of receiving distress calls over the last few months.
LCCH Asia principal Sheila Menon said Putrajaya’s acknowledgement of the people’s psychological wellbeing was especially important for the next year, as the stress from the Covid-19 pandemic was likely to bring long-term impacts on their mental state.
“Mental health has become something very real on the agenda. No one has escaped the impact and uncertainty of Covid-19 and it is important to realise that we are living through the crisis.
“It is equally important to provide support for frontliners, politicians and the public,” she told FMT.
While hotlines and shelters were among some immediate solutions to the crisis, Sheila said the government should look at training programmes for medical doctors to be able to support their patients beyond physical means.
“Training programmes can also be provided for psychology graduates and people with counselling certificates who are not yet working in mental healthcare. With appropriate skill training, they could also offer support to the mental health crisis.”
Tabling the budget proposals on Friday, Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz said of the RM322.5 billion allocated for 2021, RM24 million was to enhance programmes and address mental health problems, violence prevention and substance abuse.
He said the health ministry’s Psychosocial Helpline had received more than 35,000 distress calls from March to October, mostly from those suffering from depression, stress and anxiety.