Uganda Has Only 12 Doctors For Mental Health
Mar 15, 2004
THERE is one psychiatrist for every two million Ugandans, a senior psychiatrist has said.<br>
By Charles Ariko
THERE is one psychiatrist for every two million Ugandans, a senior psychiatrist has said.
“The country has only 12 psychiatrists for a population of 24m,†Dr. David Basangwa of Butabika Mental Hospital said yesterday.
He was speaking at the opening of a course for 40 district health workers at the hospital.
Basangwa said the ratio of mental health workers to patients in Uganda was one of the lowest in Africa.
He said most mental illnesses were preventable but the few psychiatrists found it difficult to handle the increasing number of cases.
“We need to bridge the gap created by this abnormal ratio if we are to offer quality services to the population to reverse the increasing numbers of mental patients in the country,†Basangwa said.
Over two million Ugandans are estimated to be suffering from various mental health disorders.
Basangwa attributed the small number of psychiatrists to poor remuneration, adding that this had made medical students shun the course.
“People prefer disciplines where they can make quick and easy money. In psychiatry, you deal with the less privileged. People who are less likely to pay for your services,†he said.
Dr. Fred Kigozi, the director of Butabika Hospital, said mental health was vital for the well-being of the population and should not be looked at in isolation.
“Mental health is not different from the other illnesses. The physical health of a person cannot be separated from that of the mind,†he said.
Kigozi urged the participants to demystify the idea that people who are mentally sick were useless. He said many of them recover and become useful citizens.
Ends
THERE is one psychiatrist for every two million Ugandans, a senior psychiatrist has said.
“The country has only 12 psychiatrists for a population of 24m,†Dr. David Basangwa of Butabika Mental Hospital said yesterday.
He was speaking at the opening of a course for 40 district health workers at the hospital.
Basangwa said the ratio of mental health workers to patients in Uganda was one of the lowest in Africa.
He said most mental illnesses were preventable but the few psychiatrists found it difficult to handle the increasing number of cases.
“We need to bridge the gap created by this abnormal ratio if we are to offer quality services to the population to reverse the increasing numbers of mental patients in the country,†Basangwa said.
Over two million Ugandans are estimated to be suffering from various mental health disorders.
Basangwa attributed the small number of psychiatrists to poor remuneration, adding that this had made medical students shun the course.
“People prefer disciplines where they can make quick and easy money. In psychiatry, you deal with the less privileged. People who are less likely to pay for your services,†he said.
Dr. Fred Kigozi, the director of Butabika Hospital, said mental health was vital for the well-being of the population and should not be looked at in isolation.
“Mental health is not different from the other illnesses. The physical health of a person cannot be separated from that of the mind,†he said.
Kigozi urged the participants to demystify the idea that people who are mentally sick were useless. He said many of them recover and become useful citizens.
Ends